Grief and sense of shock is palpable as town gathers to bury one of its own
THE silence was so profound and the funeral march so slow the entire town felt like a tinder box of raw, choking sorrow.
Carried high by his brothers, Detective Garda Colm Horkan made his final journey through the streets of his home town to the church where he was baptised over 49 years ago.
Described as “one of nature’s gentlemen”, the horror of his violent, inexplicable, senseless death has left his family, colleagues, friends and community crushed with shock.
From 10am uniformed gardai began to line the 2km route from Colm’s home on Ballyhaunis Road in Charlestown, Co Mayo, to St James’ Church.
By 11.30am a crowd of hundreds had swelled to thousands.
His colleagues stood tall in silence. They waited, and nobody spoke, nobody moved.
At 11.45am the funeral cortege turned from the square toward the church, the only sound was the slow exact footsteps of the regional ceremonial unit, walking either side of the hearse.
One hundred yards from the gates of the church Colm’s remains passed from the shoulders of his brothers Aiden, Brendan, Dermot and Padraig to six members of his Garda family.
Colleagues from Castlerea, among them those who prayed over his body in the moments after his brutal death, lined each side of the churchyard.
As his coffin entered the doors of the church Ave Maria echoed around the church grounds and up and down the streets.
Supt Goretti Sheridan, Colm’s superintendent in Castlerea, broke the suffocating silence. Stepping slowly to the altar, she announced a nationwide minute’s silence to remember Colm and his sacrifice.
Welcoming everyone, chief celebrant of the Mass and Charlestown parish priest, Monsignor Tommy Johnston, described Colm as someone who was “deeply loved”. He added simply “Colm Horkan was a man of goodness”.
In his homily Monsignor Johnston described the collective shock of Colm’s death and explained how he came to hear about the tragedy.
“The gunshots that rang out in the early hours of Thursday morning echoed not just in the town of Castlerea but right across the country, spreading a story of tragedy and sadness and the loss of life of a Detective Garda,” he said.
Commissioner Drew Harris said he felt immense sadness but also a great privilege to be asked to speak in tribute to Colm.
“Detective Garda Colm Horkan epitomised what all of us as members of An Garda Siochana should strive to be,” he said.
“He was approachable, wellknown and respected in his local community and also in Castlerea. His policing service was characterised by his hard work and his diligence.”
As the Mass drew to a close Colm’s brother Brendan paid an emotional tribute to his brother.
“He had all the values you would associate with a good and decent human being. He was kind, considerate, selfless and, above all, loyal to the core,” he said.
“Colm commanded respect wherever he went, time spent in his company was precious, and there was always a laugh and a joke to be had with that disarming, beaming smile of his lightening up a room and brightening up many a dark hour and day. He loved life and lived in the best way he knew how.”