Category: News

A NEW discount store in Shannon, which will employ 12 people, is expected to play a pivotal role in increasing business in the town centre by at least 10 per cent. That’s the prediction of the manager of SkyCourt shopping centre Pat Kelly, who said he is optimistic that Buy Lo will attract huge numbers of shoppers to the centre.

A number of businesses in SkyCourt have closed in recent months including fashion outlet Pink, Roxy Records, Cafe 2000 and Bank of Ireland. Nevertheless Mr Kelly remains optimistic about the future.

“We have 65 units open at the moment. There are 13 or 14 vacant. How many have they vacant in Ennis? 70. In the last two months alone we let a small grocery supermarket, Jen, which does ethnic foods. What I’m finding is that recently we are getting a lot of enquiries about people who are trying to start up businesses,” he said.

“It has been a difficult 12 months. Our footfall figures were only down eight per cent last year, but the spend of the customers wouldn’t be the same,” said Mr Kelly.

“We are weathering the downturn reasonably well and the decision by Buy Lo to locate here gives us great confidence for the remainder of 2011 and beyond,” he said.

Mr Kelly said that the plan to attract anchor tenant Buy Lo – which will open in SkyCourt next week – had been on the cards for the past two years.

“We were working on it for the past two years. We had to go for planning which held it up for a few months and then negotiations and then we had to fit out the store,” said Mr Kelly.

“We’d be hoping with Buy Lo we would get back the figures we had in 2006/2007; that’s about 12 or 13 per cent,” he said.

Buy Lo will occupy 65 per cent of the unit previously held by Tesco. Additional car parking has been created to the back of the premises. The entire unit has been gutted and subdivided. Repairs have been carried out to the roof, while new flooring has been put in place.

“Their [Buy Lo] prices are very reasonable. They are the Irish version of Lidl and Aldi. I’d be very confident that it will bring a lot of people from Ennis and further afield,” said Mr Kelly. “I feel that Buy Lo is going to be a great bonus for us. In the times we are in, it is ideal because it is discount products and that’s what people want,” he said.

THE circumstances surrounding the murder of mother-of-two Sylvia Roche-Kelly in Limerick in 2007 is featured in a new book which will hit the bookshelves later this week.

The case is included in a book written by The Cla re People journalist Emer Connolly. Out On Ba il focuses on crimes committed by people who are on bail, early release or temporary release. It features the human impact of crimes committed by those who are out on bail and contains particular emphasis on a number of specific cases.

Sylvia Roche-Kelly (33) was murdered by Jerry McGrath in a Limerick hotel bedroom in December 2007. McGrath, then aged 23, of Ballywalter, Cashel, County Tipperary, was on bail at the time, for assaulting a female taxi driver in Cavan earlier that year.

Another Clare case to feature in the book is the tragic deaths of teenage girls Lorna Mahoney (13) and Stacey Haugh (16) in a road accident near Carrigaholt in October 2003. David Naughton, who was then a teenager, was later jailed for six years for dangerous driving causing the deaths. However, after he was initially charged in connection with the accident, he was granted bail and disappeared. He was later tracked down in the UK. His decision to flee while on bail had a profound effect on the families of the two young girls, who waited every day for justice.

Among the other cases featured in the book is the vicious rape of a 75year-old widow in Nenagh by a man who was on bail at the time; and the murder of teacher Noel Carmody in Limerick in 2003 by two men – one who was on bail and the other who was unlawfully at large at the time. The murder of Swiss teenager Manuela Riedo in Galway in October 2007 by Gerald Barry is also featured. Barry, of Rosán Glas, Rahoon, Galway, was on bail at the time, having been charged with assaulting his ex-partner. Out On Ba il looks at the bail laws in Ireland and gives a voice to families who speak of the pain and suffering they have experienced, while gardaí involved in investigating such crimes express their frustrations at the system. Out On Ba il is Emer Connolly’s second book. Her first book, Lying Eyes a nd the Hitma n for Hire , was published in 2008. It was based on the story of Sharon Collins from Ennis, who solicited a ‘hitman’ to murder her partner, millionaire businessman PJ Howard, and his sons Robert and Niall. Both books are published by Gill & Macmillan. Out On Ba il will be available in bookshops from Friday.

DETAILS of specific aircraft that anti-war protesters believe have been linked to renditions have been formally handed over to gardaí in Clare.

Anti-war campaigners transported wheelbarrows of material to Shannon Garda Station last Friday morning in an effort to highlight the use of Shannon Airport by military aircraft.

Members of Shannonwatch brought the wheelbarrows – containing photographs and documents relating to the use of Shannon by CIA planes – from the Oakwood Arms Hotel to the local Garda Station, as part of their ongoing efforts to highlight their concerns.

They say that the evidence supports their claims and they are hoping that gardaí will now investigate alleged human rights violations and other possible breaches of international law at Shannon.

Ray Murphy of Amnesty International said there is substantial evidence to suggest that Ireland has played a role in the rendition circuit but that to-date, the gardaí have been either unwilling or unable to conduct searches and inspections.

“We need an effective reporting, verification and control system put in place immediately. The Minister for Justice, Equality and Defence must direct the gardaí to act to ensure Ireland complies with its international legal obligations,” said Mr Murphy.

Former United Nations Humani- tarian Co-ordinator in Iraq, Denis Halliday, emphasised the humanitarian disasters that are a direct result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. “Those who were complicit in these wars, including the Irish government, must be held to account,” he said.

“It is vital that the new Irish government prohibits the transit of belligerent US troops through Shannon Airport immediately, and focuses Irish foreign policy on genuine humanitarian support for victims of violence and natural disasters,” he added.

Shannonwatch is calling on the gardaí to review the evidence presented, and to provide a comprehensive report on the actions that will be taken to ensure Ireland complies with its international legal obligations.

The information presented to gardaí includes a list of aircraft that have at one time or another reportedly been linked to the US renditions programme. These include 20 that have been recorded at Shannon over the last eight years. “Some of these are frequent visitors to the airport,” said a Shannonwatch spokesperson. “And while many of them may not now be in use by CIA rendition crews, the fact that they have not been adequately investigated means that it is still possible for them or other aircraft to be used to commit breaches of international law,” added the spokesman.

THE Clareman caught up in the earthquake and tsunami tragedy in Japan has re-iterated his intention to stay living and working in the country, despite the decision of many other foreign nationals to leave because of nuclear meltdown fears.

Thirty-six-year-old David O’Donoghue from Shannon, who has been in Japan for the past six years was made homeless when a tsunami hit Kamasu City, where he lives and works as a teacher.

“The Irish embassy have been advising practicality in the situation,” O’Donoghue told The Clare People this Monday. “The French jumped the gun in providing two planes last week to get people out, while the international media have been dramatising the situation.

“The situation is that things have become quite upbeat and positive over the pat few days, regarding the reactor situation in Fukushima. There was and remains trepidation and some fear, people are anxious but composed,” he added.

O’Donoghue was teaching when the disaster that destroyed his apartment struck, which rendered him homeless and living with friends until finding alternative accommodation this week.

“I’m back teaching as of last Friday,” he revealed, “but the national school system is off for the time being. We still have no water and won’t have water for three months, that’s the expectation. There’s well water and water supplies have been supplied by the Japanese self-defence forces.

“It has devastated the country in many respects and what the emergency services are doing now is going step by step to repair any damage that there is. Even after only one week the change in my home town is astonishing.

“A lot of the electricity poles and telephone poles that collapsed or were teetering have been put back. They have made huge repairs in one week. There is huge progress being made. Emergency crews have been working non-stop 24 seven,” he added.

A MAN whose jail term for raping his pregnant ex-girlfriend at gunpoint in her County Clare home was described by a court as “unduly lenient” will reappear in court later this week.

Last week, the Court of Criminal Appeal (CCA) ruled that a 10-year jail term – three of which was suspended – handed down to a 45-yearold man last year should be reconsidered.

However, it did not finalise the case and adjourned it to allow for a governor’s report and psychiatric report to be prepared by the man’s legal team. The case will be before the threejudge CCA again on Thursday. The case came before the CCA after the DPP appealed the sentence handed down.

The man, who was living in Clare, was convicted last year of rape, anal rape, false imprisonment, possessing a firearm and threatening to kill the woman on September 9, 2007.

The CCA said last week it found the case to be “most shocking” as it had involved profound violence.

The man was convicted after a 14-day trial at the Central Criminal Court last year.

The trial heard that the man and his ex-girlfriend had broken up on 27 occasions.

The victim described the night as “mentally torturous” and said she had been made to believe her death and the death of her unborn baby were imminent. The trial judge, Mr Justice Paul Carney said, “It was serious criminality involving a lifethreatening siege which was diffused only by the extraordinary skilled and sensitive approach by the gardaí.” He described the incident as being at the upper end of criminality, involving a dangerous hostage siege.

A CIRCUIT COURT judge has decided not to re-activate a suspended sentence in the case of an Ennis man accused of driving while under the influence of alcohol.

Thomas Molloy (20), with an address at 12 Gordon Drive, Cloughleigh, Ennis, appeared before Ennis Circuit Court yesterday in relation to a section 99 application for an order revoking an order suspending a sentence of imprisonment.

The application arose out of a charge of driving while under the influence of alcohol. A Garda told the court that Mr Molloy was twice over the legal limit when he was caught in Dublin.

The court was told that Mr Molloy appeared before Dublin Metropolitan District Court under the Road Traffic Act in relation to the incident.

The court was told that on June 8, 2009, that Mr Molloy, and three other people, pleaded guilty to affray. He received a three year suspended sentence at the time.

Counsel for Mr Molloy said his cli- ent had pleaded guilty to the charge and had co-operated perfectly with Gardaí. Referring to the charge of affray, Counsel for Molloy said he had pleaded guilty to the charge and paid compensation of € 2,000.

He added that a “considerable period” of time had elapsed between the charge of affray and the charge or driving while under the influence of alcohol.

Judge Carroll Moran said that there was no other aggravating factor other than Mr Molloy being over the limit.

He said that driving while the twice the legal limit was a serious matter it did not require the reactivation of a suspended sentence. Judge Moran referred the matter back to the Dublin District Court.

A CLARE artists is on the verge of getting his first major international break through a major solo exhibition which will open in Australia later this month.

East Clare artist Thomas Delohery has spent much of the last 15 years painting about the horrors of the holocaust and the millions who perished in the Nazi concentration camps.

This latest exhibition, which is entitled “Shipwrecked in the Death Camps of Europe”, will be officially opened by renowned artist Victor Majzner on Tuesday, March 29, at the TACIT Contemporary Art Gallery in Melbourne.

Thomas has more then 40 solo exhibitions to his name in Ireland, England, Germany and Canada but this is his first time making it to Australia.

Thomas’ obsession with the Holocaust began in the mid-’90s when he first visited Camp II at Auschwitz-Birkenau. That day he became a pilgrim, visiting ever concentration camp in Europe over and over again, searching for something, drowning in the horror and the beauty.

“I was in the Flossenbürg Camp one autumn with two Germans – one whose father supplied meat to the camps and the other whose father was a high ranking officer in the SS,” he said.

“They walked with me through the camp. I remember looking at this horrific watch tower one minute and I’d turn away and see all of these beautiful blues and yellows. Bavaria at that time of the year, when the trees start to fade, is so beautiful, so full of colours.

“But one of my German friends started to get annoyed with me, he couldn’t understand how I could see the beauty in such an awful place. He was confused by it or maybe even perturbed,” he says.

“It was amazing to be in the camp with these guys, people whose family has such a real connection to it all. I’m always trying to make a connection to it.

“Besides my wife, whose grandmother was through the camps and thankfully managed to survive, I have no real connect to them.”

For information or to view a sample of Thomas’ work visit www.thomasdelohery.com

THERE will be a feast of St Patrick’s Day parades this Thursday, with the action in Clare starting at 11am with the Ennis Parade.

From there, both east, west and north there will be parades everywhere as Clare turns green for the day.

In east Clare the action starts in Killaloe at 2pm, before moving to Scariff for 3pm, while the Tulla Parade has a 4pm start.

In west Clare the Kilrush Parade has a 3pm start, but beforehand over 200 St Patricks will converge on the Town Square at 1pm in a bid to win a place in the Guinness Book of Records.

The Shannon Parade has a 2pm start, while events in Gort get underway with the traditional drowning of the Shamrock after 12.15pm mass.

FINE GAEL in Clare will be making a three-pronged attack to win representation in what could be the last Seanad Éireann in the history of the state, if the Government presses ahead with a pre-election promises to abolish the Upper House of the Oireachtas.

Former Mayor of Clare, Cllr Tony Mulcahy, who polled 6,827 votes in the recent General Election has been nominated by the party in Clare, with his candidacy being copper-fastened at a meeting in the Auburn Lodge last Thursday night.

Cllr Mulcahy was nominated by 12 branches of Clare Fine Gael and will now represent the party on the Labour Panel as an Oireachtas nomi- nee.

Fellow Shannon electoral area councillor, John Crowe has been nominated for the Industrial and Commercial panel, while Ennistymon electoral area councillor Martin Conway will contest the Administrative Panel. Both councillors Crowe and Conway received outside nominations to contest the election.

There will be 60 members of the Seanad, three each from the National University of Ireland and Dublin University panels; Industrial and Commercial (9), Administrative (7), Culture and Education (5), Labour (11) and Agriculture (11) where the electorate is made up of councillors and Oireachtas members, while Taoiseach Enda Kenny will make 11 nominations.

A POLISH man who drowned after falling into the sea near Kilkee last May had fished in the area over “30 times” previously, an inquest into his death has heard.

A verdict of accidental death was returned at Clare County Coroner’s Court last Wednesday, in the case of Andrej Marek (29) who died after falling into the sea at the Bridges of Ross on May 16, 2010.

Mr Marek, who had been living in Nenagh, had been out fishing with a friend at the time.

Sea conditions were rough while it had also been very windy on the day the accident occurred, the inquest was told.

After a two-day search of the area, Mr Marek’s body was recovered from the sea near Kilkee.

The inquest heard from Ian Coll who had been fishing with friends near the Bridges of Ross when he noticed two men fishing at a piece of flat rock along the cliff face.

Mr Coll described the area as a “dangerously exposed” piece of rock particularly when the sea is rough. “The sea was particularly rough that day,” he said.

Mr Coll said that it looked like one of the men was going to lower ledge on the cliff. He added that after the man made his way down the cliff he was “nowhere to be seen”. Mr Coll told the inquest that a Polish man who was with Mr Marek came over and asked them for help. Mr Coll said he rang the emergency services and the Coast Guard helicopter arrived after 30 minutes.

Wladyslaw Filar was fishing with Mr Marek on the day in question. Clare County Coroner Isobel O’Dea was told that Mr Filar has since returned to Poland. Mr Filar’s deposition was read out in court by Insp Tom Kennedy.

According to Mr Filar’s deposition, he and the deceased had fished off the Bridges of Ross “30 times” before the accident occurred.

He said that Mr Marek had been standing 15 metres away from him on a cliff, five metres above the water.

Mr Filar then said that he saw his friend, who could not swim, in the water. Mr Filar threw a life buoy towards Mr Marek. He added that he had not seen how Mr Marek had ended up in the water.

Mr Filar recalled it had been a very windy day and the waterfalls running of the cliffs were very strong. He added that it had not been raining.

In his deposition, read to the court by Insp Kennedy, Garda Ken O’Day said that when he arrived at the scene, he spoke with Mr Filar, who he described as being in a very distressed state.

Garda O’Day said the initial search for Mr Marek was called off at around 6.30pm.

The inquest heard that a search and rescue team recovered Mr Marek’s body from the sea and taken ashore at Kilkee Rescue Centre on Monday May 17, 2010.

Autopsy findings were presented in court by Dr Peter Fawl on behalf of Dr Stephen Finn. Dr Fawl stated that that Mr Marek had died as a result of drowning.

Giving her verdict, Ms O’Dea said that Mr Marek had been pronounced dead at Kilkee Rescue Centre on May 17, 2010.

She said that given Mr Filar’s evidence that the deceased had been familiar with the area where he died, the appropriate verdict was one of accidental death. Ms O’Dea acknowledged the work of the rescue services and gardaí.

Insp Kennedy described Mr Marek’s death as a tragic accident and said that he may have either slipped or have been “blown into the water”.