News in Brief

Trio charged with IRA membership

Three men arrested in Cork have been charged with membership of the IRA at a sitting of the Special Criminal Court yesterday. Sean Walsh (50) from St Johns Well, Fairhill, Cork and Joseph Walsh (36) from Glengarriff Road, Fairhill, Cork were both charged with membership of an unlawful organisation. Michael Gilmartin (46) of Chestnut Drive, Cluin Aird, Newtown, Cobh, Cork faced the same charge and was also charged with possession of a semi-automatic pistol, a sawn-off shotgun and ammunition. The men had been arrested on Thursday evening as part of an ongoing investigation into dissident Republican activity in the county. None of the men made a reply when the charges were put to the court. They were remanded in custody and will appear before the Special Criminal Court again next Wednesday morning for legal aid and bail applications.

Farmers warned of bird flu outbreak

Poultry farmers are being asked to remain vigilant in the run up to Christmas after a bird flu outbreak was reported in England. The Department of Agriculture has warned bird breeders to monitor stocks carefully and maintain strict biosecurity measures. Any disease inspection should be reported to department veterinary offices immediately. A spokesman for the department said it is closely monitoring the situation. The H5N8 strain of avian flu has been responsible for a number of outbreaks across Europe since October but no human infections have been reported.

Elderly man dies after house fire

An elderly man died in Cork yesterday after a house fire at Dillons Cross on the north side of the city. Emergency services were called to the scene at Kelleher’s Buildings at 4.30am. They believe the man died of smoke inhalation. There was no one else in the property at the time and it is believed the man lived alone. His remains were taken to Cork University Hospital where a postmortem is due to be carried out. Gardai believe the fire started accidentally.

Drink-driver detections increase

Gardai will actively target drink-drivers in the runup to Christmas as they attempt to reduce the number of drink-driving deaths on Irish roads. More than 340 drink-drivers have been arrested at checkpoints already this month, 89 more than in the same period last year. An additional 1,000 garda checks will be put in place to seek out high-risk drivers in the coming weeks. It is part of a Road Safety Authority supported campaign fronted by parents Gillian and Ronan Treacy who lost their fouryear-old son Ciaran in a collision with a drunk driver.

Immigration system ‘devastates children’

Ireland’s immigration system is having a devastating impact on children forced to flee to the country, campaigners say. An investigation into the state of services for immigrant children has flagged shortcomings that prevent them from leading a full life. The Immigrant Council has called for a new agency to be set up to specifically deal with youngsters coming into the country. Brian Killoran, chief executive of the Immigrant Council, said young people could not participate fully in Irish life because there was no clarity over their status.

Winning numbers in €3.4m Lotto jackpot

The numbers drawn in last night’s €3.4m Lotto jackpot were 20, 7, 25, 41, 27 and 45 (bonus 35). The numbers drawn in the Lotto Plus 1 were 4, 47, 7, 12, 46 and 25 (bonus 19). The numbers in the Lotto Plus 2 were 27, 17, 4, 44, 1 and 2 (bonus 21). The raffle number was 3709.

Dublin priest leaves €1.5m in will

A Catholic priest, Richard McCullen of St Paul’s, Sybil Hill, Raheny, Dublin who died on December 24, 2015 has left €1,592,987 in his will. Other wills: Carmel Ward of Kilsallaghan, Co Dublin who died on 2/5/15 left €4,978,870; Maura Maguire, a retired auctioneer of Coolbawn, Nenagh, Co Tipperary, who died on 14/9/15 left €4,127,087; Hugh Garvey, a solicitor of Cenacle Grove, Killiney, Co Dublin, who died on 22/4/16 left €2,375,416; Nora Kent, a retired housekeeper of Castlelyons, Co Cork, who died on 29/5/14 left €2,024,855; Maureen McCabe, a retired homemaker of Howth Road, Raheny, Dublin, who died on 27/1/16 left €1,525,455 and Carmel Mooney, a housewife of Bird Avenue, Clonskeagh, Dublin, who died on 13/11/15 left €1,306,771.

The value of estates may include property, including the family home and should not be regarded as cash amounts