EU officials heading back – to probe Garda college

IN THE coming days, high-ranking EU officials will fly into Dublin Airport to begin an investigation that could do irreparable damage to the reputation of An Garda Síochána.

It’s quite ironic that investigators from Olaf – the EU anti-fraud watchdog – are due to make the first of a series of visits almost seven years after the arrival of the troika.

While this upcoming visit by Olaf does not compare to the humiliation felt by the Irish people in November 2010, rest assured, it will mark a dark day for our force.

The Olaf probe will focus on the scandal-hit Templemore Training College and will seek to establish the scale of the financial irregularities – and suspected fraudulent activity – that contributed to the creation of a ‘slush fund’.

Above all, officials will investigate whether EU money was used to pay for entertainment and other Garda expenses vis-avis a Cabra bank account.

The probe is separate to the one being led by the Garda watchdog, GSOC, which has drafted in members of the fraud squad to untangle the complex web of bank accounts linked to the college’s laundry service.

A number of gardaí – both past and current – will be quizzed as part of the Olaf investigation, which may also include spot checks at Garda headquarters, as well as an inevitable visit to the training college itself.

Nóirín O’Sullivan herself has been caught up in the Templemore controversy, having previously been heavily contradicted

by some of her former senior civilian colleagues about when she was first informed of the concerns about the college’s finances.

However, now that she has resigned from the force, she is highly unlikely to volunteer herself to assist the Olaf probe.

One officer who will most certainly be interviewed by the inquiry team is Garda Keith Harrison, the Donegal-based officer who alerted Olaf to the suspected irregularities in the first place. Mr Harrison sent correspondence to Olaf despite the considerable risk posed by doing so.

If Olaf does unearth fraud involving EU monies at Templemore, it will undoubtedly prove deeply damaging to the force.

And it may well prompt the Government to, for once perhaps, take radical action when it comes to reforming An Garda Síochána.

If a slush fund is found to have existed at Templemore, surely a decision to rebrand the college would be taken as a bare minimum. Perhaps even its very future should be considered.

But, above all, if Templemore has been the epicentre of a complex web of fraudulent bank accounts, those involved must be held accountable.

It’s the very least the future generations of recruits deserve.