THE SON OF murdered prison officer Brian Stack confronted Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams at a party press conference in Dublin this morning.
Stack was shot by members of the Provisional IRA as he left a boxing match in Dublin in 1983. No one was ever convicted for his murder.
Austin Stack today accused Adams of lying about what he knows in relation to the murder of his father.
He called on Adams to hand over any information he has to the gardaí.
Addressing the accusations made against him, Adams said he rejected utterly suggestions that has told lies on the issue.
Entering the Dublin hotel conference room where party members were holding a press event on the subject of the fallout from Brexit, Stack said:
Gerry Adams, you have information that is crucial to the investigation of my father’s murder. Gerry Adams you took myself and my brother Oliver in a blacked out van to meet a senior IRA figure – a man you said you trusted. Gerry Adams I want you to give that information to An Garda Síochana.
I am not interested in hearing any more of your lies and your untruths Gerry Adams. I want you to take the information you have to An Garda Síochana because you, as a public representative, are an absolute disgrace if you don’t.
Prior to Stack addressing the press conference, Adams reiterated the point he made in the Dáil yesterday that the murder of Brian Stack was wrong.
“It should never have happened,” he said.
I set out yesterday in great detail how I had attempted to help the Stack family, I did my best – it clearly isn’t enough.
Under pressure from other party leaders, Gerry Adams yesterday agreed to made a statement to the Dáil about information he had received in relation to the 1983 murder.
In his speech, Adams reiterated an earlier assertion that names he had provided to the Garda Commissioner in relation to the case were given to him by Austin Stack.
Adams said he never described these people as “suspects” and that Fianna Fáil leader Micheál Martin had previously “misled the Dáil” in saying he did.
Following Adams’ speech, Fine Gael TD Alan Farrell stood up to raise “a point of order”.
The Fine Gael TD said:
I think it appropriate given that Deputy Adams has been afforded the opportunity to explain to the house his involvement and/or his discussions with individuals relating to this case, that the other individuals who are members of this house who he himself has named and which are already in the public domain, that deputies Ellis and Ferris be given an opportunity to address this house.
Adams claims a list of names he handed over to the Garda Commissioner were given to him by Austin Stack. However, Stack contends that he never gave names to Adams.
Commenting on Stack’s comments today, Adams said the notion Austin and his brother were coerced into the van which took them to meet a senior IRA leader was false.
He said the Stacks had agreed to the process. “I didn’t have to do it, they didn’t have to go, it was their desire.”
“I reject utterly that I have been telling lies on this issue.”
Speaking to the media after the press conference, Stack said:
Yesterday we witnessed a pantomime in Dáil Eireann in which Gerry Adams went into the house and told untruth after untruth after untruth. Today I had to address that. The crux of the matter is we have a man who is the leader of the third largest party in Dáil Eireann – he is refusing to cooperate with a major murder investigation.
This man knows the people that murdered my father, this man knows where these people are, he told us at the meeting we had with Gerry Adams that those individuals are still alive. He said those people were not prepared to meet with us, so Gerry Adams has information that is crucial to a murder investigation.
If this was Micheál Martin, Brendan Howlin or Enda Kenny, the media would be all over this, no one would be taking this lying down, but why do we have different standards applying to Gerry Adams?
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say