Sinn Féin Poblachtach want to condemn the arrest of one of our members on Wednesday January 28th, who is chairman of Cavan Sinn Féin Poblachtach, in an early morning raid which was coordinated by the RUC/PSNI and Drew Harris’s Gardaí.

The Sinn Féin Poblachtach member was arrested at his home in Cavan by over 20 armed detectives from the Special detective unit in Dublin along with 16 members of the Emergency Response Unit and Armed Support Units all armed with machine guns.

They proceeded to drag him out of his bed and made him stand naked with his hands on his head while red dots from their weapons were fixed on his head and chest. He was not allowed to dress himself and members of the armed response unit forcefully dressed him in his underwear and a t-shirt. He was then put on the floor before viciously assaulting him, tying him up and standing on his back.

He was then dragged from his home, the whole time red dots from the machine guns were focused at his head and he was brought to Cavan Garda Station to be questioned where he was interrogated for over a day in just his underwear and t-shirt.

During the raid his home was ransacked and his back garden was dug up. Sniffer dogs were also used in the house.

At the same time his elderly mother’s house and farm in Co Fermanagh was raided and searched by 16 vehicle loads of Crown Forces. During that search his mother was verbally abused and threatened with arrest. Other members of the extended family arrived to give support to his mother and were threatened with arrest. The RUC/PSNI took photos of every room in his mother’s home, which was sinister in itself.

There is no doubt whatsoever that this was a vicious attack on an Irish Republican which was coordinated between the RUC/PSNI and Gardaí. Since former RUC special branch member Drew Harris was appointed as Garda Commissioner in the 26-Counties we have seen a huge increase in cooperation between the Crown Forces and Gardaí in an attempt to harass and intimidate Irish Republicans. These attacks are no doubt directed by MI5, the organisation behind the Dublin & Monaghan bombings and countless other atrocities in Ireland. Drew Harris’s work with MI5 is well documented and he has refused to release information on the Dublin & Monaghan bombings. His hands are stained with the blood of Irish men and women.

We have said it before and we will say it again, no level of intimidation and harassment will deter the good work our members do in their communities. Vicious attacks like these only increase our support in these communities as the true face of the RUC/PSNI and Gardaí is shown to all.

CRÍOCH/ENDS

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