Breaking Two arrested as heroin worth almost €3m seized in Dublin
Two men are being questioned after gardaí seized almost €3 million worth of heroin in Dublin city.
More than 21kg of the drug was discovered in Coolock last night as part of an investigation by the Garda Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau.
The heroin was in 1kg blocks.
A 34-year-old Spanish man and a 44-year-old man from the UK were arrested and are being questioned in Dublin garda stations.
They are being detained under anti-gang legislation and can be held for up to a week.
Gardaí suspect the seizure could be linked to the Dublin-based organised crime group known as 'The Family' but say they are still trying to establish its origin and ownership.
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Irish Daily Mirror
an hour ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Irish wife of 'innocent hostage' in Iraq shares his first words after release
The Irish wife of an "innocent hostage" freed from prison in Iraq after four years has revealed his first words were, "my family, I'm out". Robert Pether left his family home at Elphin in Roscommon in April 2021 to fly to Baghdad to sort out a €20 million contract row between his Dubai-based employer and the Central Bank of Iraq. But he was arrested and jailed on fraud charges, which he denies and which the United Nations claims are false. After over four years of his family campaigning in the Irish Mirror for his freedom amid rapid deterioration in cancer survivor Rob's health, he is now out of prison. His wife Desree revealed he is in seriously bad health but cannot return home yet because Iraq has imposed a travel ban. She told us: "We got the news from Robert himself via video call on his solicitor's phone. His first words were, 'There's my family, I'm out'." She added that it is such "a huge relief" but he "is not home yet" so this is just a "step in the right direction". She revealed that she can't go to Iraq to bring him home for "urgent medical care" because their "kids are too scared of me going out to get him in case I would get jailed too". Desree said her husband is "unrecognisable" to her, four years after she last saw him. She hopes that the move to get him home will start as soon as the Islamic holiday of Eid ends. The religious period, which is often used by countries in the Middle East to release prisoners, started yesterday and ends on Tuesday, June 10. The UAE released 963 as part of Eid and Afghanistan released 1,500, according to international figures. Desree told the Irish Mirror: "It was a really brief call when he rang to say he was out. It was the first time that we had seen him in the flesh in four years. "We were in shock because he has deteriorated so much. He is unrecognisable. "He is really scrawny and skinny and looks so unwell. It was a huge shock for the kids to see him like that. "We knew that he had been sick for the last four months, but to actually see the toll that all of this has taken on his body was shocking. "It reinforced for us how much we have to fight to get rid of this travel ban and get him home after Eid finishes. "He needs to get home for urgent medical treatment. We are talking to him and trying to keep up his spirits and keep him company while we try to get him home. "It is a huge relief that we have taken a step in the right direction, but he is not here yet. I can't go to him. "The children are just not comfortable with me flying over. They have already lost one parent and they don't trust that I would be safe. "They would be devastated if they lost me as well. We can't be there with him now, but it is brilliant that it is happening. We are massively grateful." She added: "Robert is not well at all. He really needs to just come home so he can get the proper medical care he needs. "It was a shock. It was hard to be very happy to see him but also to see the state of him. "He's completely unrecognisable. It's a shock to the system to see how far he has declined. "We don't know the exact stipulations on the travel ban but at least he's out of the prison, and in a comfortable bed. "It has been a living nightmare every day, 18 hours a day, seven days a week. "We've still got another major battle ahead to get him home. Until he's actually on the plane, out of airspace, and on his way, I don't think we will breathe properly and let go of all the angst." Rob, who is from Australia but his home is in Roscommon, applied for Irish citizenship before he was sentenced to four years in prison. His family – who say he is an "innocent hostage" – last month warned in the Irish Mirror that he had been hit with a new cancer diagnosis. They said his continued detention could mean a death sentence. Rob, who previously had melanoma skin cancer, has a prostate that is "three times normal size", revealed Desree. His family expected him to be released in January, but he was hit with fresh money-laundering charges, which Rob and his lawyers have rejected. Efforts to have him released urgently intensified, with Tanaiste Simon Harris holding top level talks with Iraq's deputy prime minister Dr Fuad Hussein to lobby for Rob's freedom. The family was making plans to sell their home, their car, and their furniture in a bid to raise cash to "survive". Construction engineer Rob, 49, and wife Desree, 53, and kids Flynn 21, Oscar 19, and Nala 12 have been apart since he was arrested in April 2021. Several high-profile figures including Taoiseach Micheal Martin, Tanaiste Mr Harris, Sinn Fein Dail TD Claire Kerrane, party leader Mary Lou McDonald, and former senator Eugene Murphy all vowed to help secure his release. Australia's foreign affairs minister Penny Wong recently called for his release and said: "It's time for him to be returned to his family." A spokesperson for America's special presidential envoy for hostage affairs (SPEHA) said recently: "We hope to see him reunited with his family as soon as possible." Mr Harris said the latest development is "welcome news in what has been a long and distressing saga for Robert's wife, three children and his wider family and friends"
Irish Times
4 hours ago
- Irish Times
‘I called him Dad': the Dublin scout leader and the men who accuse him of abuse
It was an incongruous sight on a sunny, quiet Sunday spring morning: a red van, crumpled at the front, jutting out on to a normally busy road in suburban south Dublin that had been closed by gardaí . The force of the impact with the old Norway Maple had crushed the front of the van on the driver's side; bark had been ripped from the tree. The damage to both van and tree gave an indication of how fast the vehicle had been travelling, in a 50km/h speed limit zone. The single-vehicle crash , which happened shortly after 6am on Sunday, April 7th, 2024 in Churchtown, claimed the life of the driver, the van's sole occupant. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Three hours later, the road was still closed as gardaí investigated how it happened. A garda at the tape cordon declined to speculate. The scene of the crash in which Neville Kearns died on April 7th, 2024 Within 48 hours it emerged that the driver, who was 69, had been due to stand trial the following day on 113 counts including charges of indecent assault, sexual assault, rape and attempted rape. They related to allegations made by five complainants dating back to the 1980s and 1990s. READ MORE The man's identity has never been publicly disclosed. His name was Neville Kearns. A number of men had provided statements to the Garda, lodging complaints that had led to his pending trial in the criminal courts. Kearns, of Edenvale Apartments, a gated apartment complex on Grange Road – not far from Marlay Park in Rathfarnham, south Dublin – was facing 71 counts of indecent assault, 27 of sexual assault, 13 of rape and two of attempted rape at the time of his death. The trial had been due to begin eight days before his 70th birthday. Edenvale Apartments, Rathfarnham, where Neville Kearns lived. Photograph: Nick Bradshaw On Monday, April 8th, 2024 the court was informed of Kearns's death; counsel for the Director of Public Prosecutions told Mr Justice Paul McDermott, sitting at Dublin Central Criminal Court, that the DPP was entering a nolle prosequi – a decision to no longer prosecute. The court directed that the indictment be marked 'deceased'. The men concerned had been ready to go into the witness box to testify against Kearns and outline the abuse they claimed to have suffered at his hands. Today, three of them have decided to share their story publicly for the first time but wish to maintain their anonymity. They believe that being named could bring 'chaos' into their lives and those of their loved ones. Gardaí seal off the road in Churchtown following the crash in which Neville Kearns died last year 'I have children in college, an elderly mother to care for, bills to pay and a life to live,' one says. Now aged in their late 40s and 50s, the men allege that Kearns targeted, groomed and regularly sexually assaulted them as children. They say the alleged incidents took place in the 1980s and early 1990s, when they were aged between 10 and 15, and Kearns was in his 20s and 30s. Kearns denied the allegations. Kearns was a former member of the Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland, as it was then known, and worked as a house master at St Joseph's School For Deaf Boys in Cabra, Dublin. He went on regular camping trips with boys. Many of these were not official scouting events, but the men say Kearns used his previous involvement in the organisation as a way to legitimise himself. In some cases, the alleged abuse also took place in the children's homes or in Kearns's family home. The men say they worked through decades of pain – and years of preparing for the prospect of a trial – only to have their chance at justice snatched from them 24 hours before they were due in court. 'The whole world fell apart really,' says Andrew*. 'It was the Sunday morning; the trial was the next morning, Monday. And I just knew – as soon as I saw the guard's name come up [on my phone] – I knew.' He knew Kearns was dead and the trial was never going to happen. Neville Kearns on a trip with scouts Andrew believes the location of the crash is significant; two of the men who claim Kearns abused them as children live in the area. He says he was 'absolutely terrified' in the weeks leading up to the trial date, knowing he would be 'quizzed' on the most traumatic thing that ever happened to him. 'It was something I had to do,' he says. 'My own son was the same age as I was at that stage. I could see myself in him as a kid. That drove me on.' His motivation in testifying was to get Kearns 'taken off the streets, and not let him have the opportunity to be in the company of kids'. Andrew had considered contacting the authorities about Kearns for some time, but didn't feel he could do so until his own parents had died: 'I absolutely couldn't do anything about it while they were still alive because they had entrusted this man so deeply. It would have broken their hearts.' Neville Kearns: Scouting Ireland says Kearns ceased to be a member of the Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland in 1976 and later established an independent youth group He was considering what to do when, at his mother's wake, he received a text message. It was Kearns. 'It was the first time I'd heard from him in over 20-odd years, sending his commiserations,' Andrew says, pausing as he recalls it. 'The neck of him.' Receiving this message angered Andrew, but it solidified his decision to contact the authorities – first Tusla, then the Garda. He thought he was 'the only one in the world' who Kearns targeted but, in recent years, found out 'it was way bigger than I'd anticipated'. 'I was shocked, flabbergasted,' he says. Chris (not his real name), one of the men who made a complaint to the Garda about Neville Kearns. Photograph: Nick Bradshaw 'Chris' speaks about the Dublin scout leader who abused him Listen | 02:42 Over several years, Kearns befriended the boys and, crucially, their parents. 'Everybody adored him, everybody thought he was just this amazing man who gave so freely of his time for the local youth who were just hanging around all summer,' says Chris*, one of the men whose complaints led to the former scout leader's prosecution. 'He was a very charismatic, attractive, friendly, gentle man – that was his persona. It was just this kind, caring person that would happily look after your kids.' On a sunny afternoon, sitting in his livingroom, Chris recalls how the 1980s were 'a completely different time'. 'Everybody was a latchkey kid in the summer in Ireland,' he says, describing carefree days when children regularly went without adult supervision. Chris was raised by a single mother. Kearns became a mentor and, ultimately, a father figure. 'I called him Dad,' he says, adding that his mother was 'delighted' he had a positive male role model in his life. 'I called him dad': 'Chris' speaks about how he was groomed and abused by Neville Kearns Listen | 02:42 He doesn't believe he was abused because his mother was a single parent who worked outside the home to provide for her family. 'I was abused because he found a vulnerability in me and exploited it,' he says. Others allegedly abused by Kearns grew up with both parents or stay-at-home mothers, he recalls. Neville Kearns in his scout uniform Chris says he knew Kearns for about a year before anything inappropriate happened. By that stage, Chris trusted him 'completely'. 'It was letters first; I'd get little notes from him and he'd tell me how much he loved me,' he says. Over time, Chris says, Kearns started to become physical with him – ultimately forcing him to carry out sexual acts on a regular basis. At the height of the alleged abuse, he says, Kearns would frequently visit his house – unbeknown to Chris's mother – and assault him during the night. He would then 'hide under the bed until he could sneak out in the morning'. Chris describes the sexual acts perpetrated against him as 'horrific'. They had a 'profound impact' on his emotional state. 'He made me feel like I was the one who wanted it. It's very difficult to get past those emotions,' he says. 'I loved him as a father. I suppose that's why it all unwound for me as soon as I had kids. Fathers don't have sex with their children. What the hell was he doing?' Eileen Finnegan, a psychotherapist who helped Chris through intensive therapy, says the alleged grooming in this case is typical of predators; befriending boys and their families over a prolonged period of time so, when it finally happened, the abuse 'totally blindsided people'. 'The power and control and the level of grooming that he was able to do – he was absolutely systematic in what he was doing. He knew exactly what he was doing,' she says. Eileen Finnegan, psychotherapist and former clinical director of the charity One in Four. Photograph: Alan Betson Finnegan has extensively researched this area and previously served as the clinical director at One in Four, a charity that supports survivors of childhood sexual abuse. She says it is common for survivors of abuse to compartmentalise what happened to them – or block it out completely. 'For the mental wellbeing of the person, the brain actually comes in and splits off because it is so traumatic. It's a huge coping mechanism,' she says. [ View that child sex abuse is a thing of the past 'has allowed it to persist', says charity Opens in new window ] It is also relatively common for people not to disclose what happened to them until after their parents have died. Finnegan says survivors of abuse can find it difficult to tell their loved ones, especially parents, because it's usually them who welcomed the offenders into the family home. 'No child comes over with an adult and says: 'Mam and Dad, I'm after bringing a friend home for you.' It is mostly Mam and Dad there with a neighbour or friend or somebody that has begun to acquaint themselves with the family,' she says. Chris says that, while processing what had happened to him through therapy, he realised that it was unlikely he was the only one who had been targeted by Kearns. 'With the awful clarity of hindsight, I now look back at photographs from that time and I can identify the children [Kearns] likely targeted,' he says. The three men interviewed by The Irish Times say they were assaulted in numerous locations – often on camping trips. On several occasions, they claim, Kearns got them drunk on rum or port. Chris says the sexual acts perpetrated against him had a 'profound impact'. Photograph: Nick Bradshaw 'If I smell [rum] now, it makes me go somewhere, so I don't touch it,' says Michael*, another of those whose complaints led to the criminal prosecution being taken against Kearns. Michael says he was regularly abused on camping trips and at Kearns's house. On one occasion, he and other boys were visiting St Joseph's School For Deaf Boys in Cabra for a 'sleepover'. Kearns allegedly kept giving the boys mugs of rum. Michael got very drunk and remembers being carried out of the room. 'When I woke, it was in his private room. It still sends a shiver down my spine as to what happened that night,' he says. 'How many other boys, vulnerable boys, ended up there?' Becoming emotional, Michael says the abuse lasted for several years and he 'prayed' it would end. On multiple occasions as an adult, he 'pointed the car in the direction of Dundrum Garda station and started to drive'. 'But I never made it,' he says. In 2019, while sitting at home one evening, Michael told his wife what had happened to him as a child. 'I just blurted it out ... within an hour, we were at the Garda station,' he recalls. He didn't realise that, at around the same time, other men were also contacting the Garda or Tusla about Kearns. Ultimately, a case file was prepared for the office of the DPP, which agreed there was enough evidence to proceed with a trial. 'I categorically know that there are other men out there who have suffered at his hands but haven't come forward or, if they've come forward, they decided not to press charges,' Michael says. Whether they choose to contact gardaí or not, he adds, these men should seek support from a loved one or professional – if they feel ready to do so. Neville Kearns as a scout leader A spokesman for An Garda Síochána said the first statement of complaint they received about Kearns was made in May 2019. He was 'arrested and interviewed on several occasions' in relation to complaints made by five men, he added. 'Anyone who believes they may have been a victim or have knowledge of an alleged crime is encouraged to contact any Garda station,' the spokesman said. 'Victims can be assured that they will be supported and heard. An Garda Síochána will treat all reports sensitively and in confidence.' A spokeswoman for Scouting Ireland said that according to its records, Kearns ceased to be a member of the Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland in 1976 and was not affiliated with any of the legacy scout organisations after that time. (The Catholic Boy Scouts of Ireland and Scout Association of Ireland merged to form Scouting Ireland in 2004.) [ Embattled Scouting Ireland board 'exhausted' by infighting, review finds Opens in new window ] She noted that Kearns established an independent youth group 'which was not authorised by, or affiliated to, the legacy scouting organisations'. 'Individuals who were members of [this group], and believed it to have been an official scout group, came forward disclosing abuse to Scouting Ireland in 2019 and 2020,' she said. The spokeswoman said Scouting Ireland recognises the men's 'bravery in speaking out', adding that the organisation has paid for counselling services. 'We encourage any individual who experienced abuse while in scouting to report the matter to the appropriate authorities or to Scouting Ireland's safeguarding team.' Neville Kearns on a scouting trip St Joseph's School for Deaf Boys no longer exists. It amalgamated with St Mary's School for Deaf Girls to form a new school, Holy Family School for the Deaf, in 2016. A spokeswoman for the new school said it 'adheres rigorously' to child protection legislation and guidelines. Tusla, the Child and Family Agency, said it cannot comment on individual cases but encouraged people to come forward if they needed support. As he reflects on the fact that a trial will now never take place, Chris says Kearns's death meant that 'he could just disappear into the footnotes of history without a trace'. Imagining what he would have said to Kearns in court, he says: 'You had the opportunity to face up to what you had done but you chose not to, and so you have left a despicable legacy of abuse over decades. How many more children did you violate? When did you stop? Did you stop? We will never know – that secret has gone to the grave with you, as your final act of cowardice.' Fourteen months on, pieces of shattered glass from Kearns's van still sit at the foot of the maple tree he crashed into in Churchtown. The men deprived of their day in court and the justice they sought will be picking up the pieces for years to come. * Names have been changed to protect the interviewees' identities ** Reporter Órla Ryan can be contacted at ** If you have been affected by anything in this story, please contact One in Four by e-mailing info@ or calling 01 66 24070; the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre's freephone 24-Hour National Helpline can be reached by calling 1800 77 8888 * If you have had a similar experience, you can share this using the form below.
Irish Examiner
12 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Robert Pether's family to hear of restrictions put on engineer next week
The family of Irish-based engineer Robert Pether has to wait until next Wednesday before being able to find out exactly what restrictions have been placed on him following his release from an Iraqi jail. The 50-year-old was released on bail on Thursday and is currently in accommodation in Iraq, organised by the Irish, Australian, and Egyptian embassies for himself and his Egyptian work colleague, Khalid Radwan. The men have been in prison in Iraq since April 7, 2021, after being arrested on fraud charges following a contractual dispute involving his employer over a new building for the Central Bank of Iraq. The Australian and his wife Desree had been living with their children in Elphin, Roscommon, prior to his arrest. They moved to Ireland in 2019. He and his colleague were arrested after being called to a meeting in Baghdad to discuss the project they had been working on. Desree told the Irish Examiner that legal fees have cost the family more than €100,000 since Robert's imprisonment, and she had to sell the family car 'so that we could eat'. She said her husband has missed many family milestones including their children's birthdays, their oldest son's graduation, and his own 50th birthday in April. Their 12-year-old daughter asked Santa every year to bring her father home She said the couple were 20 years married last October — a milestone they had planned to mark with a vow renewal ceremony. Desree says they are waiting to get information on what restrictions apply to his release. However, they cannot get this information until the Eid Al-Adha festival ends on Wednesday. Gut issue She said he needs to be brought back to Ireland as a matter of urgency because he is very ill with a gut issue. He has had no medical assessment since his release. While he was on a high after his release, he found it difficult to sleep on Thursday night, finding his new accommodation as 'too quiet' after his prison experience. Desree said the Irish Government has gone 'above and beyond' in Robert's case, especially as he is not an Irish citizen. On Friday, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said the fact that he is an Australian citizen is a complicating factor. However, he said: 'Both ourselves and the Australian government have been working together in terms of endeavouring to get him out.' He said the Irish Government has been making 'continuing efforts for quite a long number of years now' in Robert's case. Mr Martin said the current Iraqi foreign minister has been very helpful and he said he himself, as well as Tánaiste Simon Harris, have been in touch with him. Mr Martin added: "It is very distressing for his family and his wife and kids, and I don't want to say things that may in any way hinder his eventual arrival back to Ireland, but I believe this is a good first step. "We have to work very hard with countries such as Iraq and others in terms of the treatment of Irish citizens.' Read More Irish-based Australian released after four years in Iraqi jail
