Communion children under armed guard
School in fear of Traveller-feud violence calls in elite Garda unit
ARMED gardaí maintained a ring of steel around a First Holy Communion ceremony in rural Ireland yesterday, the Irish Mail on Sunday can reveal.
Members of the Regional Support Unit kept a firm eye on proceedings as children in full Communion dress entered St Mel’s Cathedral in Longford town.
Smiling and in full make-up, false eyelashes and fake tan, they seemed blissfully unaware of the potential threat of violence after the murder of a Traveller man at a wedding in 2015.
Unmarked Garda cars also patrolled the town in the run-up to and during the ceremony and a checkpoint was also set up.
Armed gardaí circled the cathedral as children and their families arrived in vintage cars and a stretch limousine.
The gardaí were on high alert in case of any Traveller feud-related violence erupting and they made their presence known at the Communion, at the request of a local school. It is understood the school requested the armed support as a result of an ongoing feud between local Traveller families.
The Garda presence allowed the Communion to go off without any violence and their discretion ensured this happened without worrying any of the children. In
‘They are nervous of threats flying around’
February, four members of the same family were jailed for a total of seven-and-a-half years over a shooting at a Traveller wedding in St Mary’s Church in Newtownbutler, Co. Fermanagh, in 2015.
A source told the MoS that the ongoing Traveller feud is connected to the McGinley murder, recent assaults and ‘drug territory battles’ in Longford.
The source said: ‘Armed patrols because of a First Holy Communion, that is what is necessary now.
‘The school requested it. They are nervous because of the Traveller feud and threats and have been flying around.
‘It is frightening and it is all as a result of the fallout from the murder at the wedding in 2015,’ said the source.
‘We’ve had pipe bombs in the town and there are real fears of children being attacked at school.’
Patrick McGinley, 49, Ardlougher Road, Irvinestown, was jailed for four years after pleading guilty to the manslaughter of Athlone man Barney McGinley outside the church in 2015.
Judge Adrian Colton told him he would serve another four years on supervised licence following his release from prison.
As the sentence was passed, relatives of the dead man left the public gallery, shouting: ‘You have to come out you know. You can stick your f***ing four years.’ As McGinley was being led handcuffed from the dock to the cells, the dead man’s tearful widow, Brigid, repeatedly banged on the door of the public gallery, shouting at the defendant: ‘You’re a murderer, you’re a murderer. Scum. Scum. You’re a scumbag. What are you grinning at? You’re the scum of the earth.’
His son, William McGinley, 29, of Sallyswood, Irvinestown, was jailed for three-and-a-half years after he admitted wounding Barney McGinley’s son, Bernard Oliver McGinley with intent to cause him grievous bodily harm.
The judge told him that he would serve a further three years and nine months on supervised licence on his release from jail. Two other sons of Patrick McGinley Sr, Patrick McGinley Jr, 24, of Lisfarrell, Edgeworthstown, Co. Longford, and another who cannot be named because of his age, had pleaded guilty to a charge of affray over the same incident. Patrick McGinley Jr was ordered to carry out 150 hours community service.
It was the prosecution case that the shooting happened outside St Mary’s Catholic Church in Newtownbutler on February 11, 2015 where the wedding of the niece of Patrick McGinley Sr was due to take place.
Senior prosecutor Neil Connor QC said that ‘there appeared to a considerable amount of bad blood between the two families which could be termed as a “family feud”.
‘It’s as a result of the wedding murder’