GARDA COMMISSIONER DREW Harris has said that Gardaí are set to seek charges on further suspects in the Kevin Lunney abduction case. 

Three men were convicted before the Special Criminal Court for the 2019 attack on Lunney yesterday, and Harris said today that there is “work to do” in relation to the investigation. 

Speaking at the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors conference today, the Commissioner said his officers were pleased with the convictions. 

“If I put it, will we uncover this conspiracy, there is work for us to do but I would say that we have a lot of enquiries ongoing,” he said.

“When one engages in the long-term acts of criminal deception then you do leave a trail and it requires persistence and diligence in our part to uncover that trail and that’s what we’re intent on doing.” 

The Commissioner said gardaí were continue to operate in a joint investigation task force with their Northern Ireland colleagues in the PSNI.

Harris was asked did investigators know who organised the attack on Lunney – known as the ‘paymaster’.

“The paymaster is not our phrase or comment on this investigation,” he said.

“What I would say with the investigation team, and I know what they’re doing, they are following where the evidence takes them. We’ve gathered evidence.

“And as time has moved, we have got more assistance from the public. And that has given us leads as well. So we’ll go where this investigation takes us.” 

Harris said that the garda probe is continuing and there are a number of suspects that detectives are preparing files on for the Director of Public Prosecutions.

“The investigation in effect carries on. It doesn’t start from yesterday. We have multiple lines of inquiry ongoing and throughout this there is a number of individuals that are going to be reported to the Director of Public Prosecutions over the next number of weeks as well,” he said.

“So there’s more files to be submitted and the further investigation carries on. But we have a large scale investigation and we are very determined in terms of getting to the bottom of this and we’ve appointed the necessary and appropriate specialist resources to this as well.”

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