Supt. Kevin Lennon and Det. Noel McMahon, with the assistance of Garda “informer” Adrienne McGlinchey, conceived of the plot in order to boost their career prospects, a report by Justice Frederick Morris noted last Thursday.
The first report by the tribunal said that the two men had offered the inquiry a “tissue of lies” and went on to criticize as negligent a senior Donegal garda who served in the area at the time for failing to uncover their plot.
The bogus “arms finds,” made by Lennon and McMahon in 1993 and ’94, were lauded at the time by Garda chiefs, the then minister of justice and the British government’s Northern secretary as a significant blow against the IRA.
Morris was scathing in his examination of the Donegal division. He said: “The scheme of deception could not have succeeded but for the negligent manner in which the Donegal division was being managed at the time.”
The report is expected to lead to a widespread reexamination of current Garda practice. Morris said his findings should prompt a tightening of Garda HQ control over the organization, tougher discipline and an overhaul of record keeping.
Morris offered a damning assessment of the current state of Irish policing, saying: “Ultimately, the gradual erosion of discipline within An Garda S