A retired parish priest has written to Minister for Justice Alan Shatter calling for an independent commission of inquiry into the “horrendous death” of Fr Niall Molloy at Clara Co Offaly in July 1985.
Co
Roscommon-based Fr Frank McGauran (78) who went to school with Fr
Molloy, has told the Minister that without a public inquiry “the
widespread unease, distrust and suspicion of cover up and collusion at a
high level, will inevitably fester and grow deeper”.
Fr Molloy’s badly beaten body was found at Kilcoursey House, the Co Offaly home of Richard and Teresa Flynn, on the day after their daughter’s wedding in July 1985.
Richard Flynn was subsequently charged with manslaughter but was acquitted at the direction of the presiding judge Frank Roe, who knew the Flynn family.
Last month Mr Shatter announced the
appointment of senior counsel Dominic McGinn to carry out “an
independent examination of the report of the Garda Serious Crime Review
Team relating to the death of Fr Niall Molloy”.
Cold case
But yesterday Fr McGauran said he did not regard an inquiry into the Garda cold case report as sufficient to answer the many questions surrounding the killing.
“That’s just kicking the can down
the road. There is such pressure on him [the Minister] about this case
he had to give a little bit, but I cannot see it coming to anything. It
is all about the Garda report,” said Fr McGauran.
The
retired priest said there was “no doubt in my mind” that there had been
a cover up.
“When you think about it this is a terrible miscarriage of
justice”.
In his letter, Fr McGauran said many
speakers at a recent rally in Castlecoote, Co Roscommon, where Fr Molloy
was a popular curate, had suggested that Mr Shatter had given a
pre-election promise to establish a public inquiry into the case.
“I
and many others want to know why you appear to be reneging on that
promise. I have not the least doubt that there is no other way of
getting to the truth of this grave matter without fear or favour”, the
retired priest wrote.
Fr McGauran complimented the
Minister for his “outside the box” scrutiny of many issues since taking
office. “I sincerely trust that you will do likewise with the Fr Molloy
issue that haunts and trouble me and many others throughout Ireland,”
he wrote.
Asked to comment on the priest’s letter,
a spokeswoman referred to the Minister’s recent statement to the Dáil
about the appointment of a senior counsel to review the report of the
Garda Serious Crime Review Team.
After receiving
this Garda “cold case” report the Director of Public Prosecutions
determined that there would be no further prosecutions in the case.
The
Minister told the Dáil that the new review by senior counsel will
identify whether any form of further inquiry, aside from the criminal
investigation, would be warranted in the public interest.