Cop Watch Special

national | crime and justice | opinion/analysis

Wednesday October 11, 2006 03:07

by xtic - Shell to Sea

Peaceful protesters at the Corrib terminal at Bellanaboy have become increasingly concerned at the unlawful assaults carried out by Sgt. Conor O'Reilly.

Shell to Sea urgently requires information on this individual.

Despite there being three Garda Superintendents on duty at the Bellanaboy blockade, operational matters appear, on the ground at least, to have fallen under the personal control of Sgt. Conor O'Reilly. O'Reilly stands out from the brightly attired rank and file by wearing the garda equivalent of combat fatigues and he has been present in the Erris area for the past number of weeks.

O'Reilly has also distinguished himself in the manner in which he has conducted himself over the last number of days, but particularly on Monday morning, when he assaulted two of the protesters in plain sight of a number of his colleagues.

In one instance an individual was dragged from the crowd into a group of guards and punched by O'Reilly in the face with the comment You've been asking for this . In a second incident another protester had her arm twisted to breaking point, before O'Reilly released her. He particularly likes crushing the muscle under the arm beside the armpit, an agonising trick he may well have picked up when training with the WEGA (Wiener Einsatz Gruppe Alarmabteilung), the Viennese riot squad.

O'Reilly was responsible for a number of other assaults on Monday morning and obviously picked his victims in advance. He is clearly to be seen in the RTE news report broadcast on Monday evening, in one instance obviously losing control of the situation.

Were his actions an attempt to up the ante and to provoke peaceful protesters to a violent reaction? This was certainly the spin generated by the Garda Press Office and local Supt Joseph Gannon, who expressed concern afterwards about the new level of aggression shown by the protesters. Or is it the case that O'Reilly is a calculating coward, who carefully selects a target and then attacks when the media aren't looking?

O'Reilly's activities are clearly illegal; in the context of a peaceful demonstration where the majority of participants are not hardened activists, his actions are completely unjustifiable. O'Reilly's reputation and promotional prospects are clearly dependant on how he performs at Bellanaboy and he requires careful watching.

Shell to Sea would be particularly interested in finding out more about O'Reilly. Where for example is he usually based? Is O'Reilly even his real name? Is he really only a sergeant when officers of a higher rank are clearly taking orders from him?

Of course, there are wider questions to be asked regarding the deployment of so many police at the behest of a multinational. We expect that the continuing occupation of the area will eventually become too big an issue for the mainstream issue to ignore.

O'Reilly has clearly demonstrated that he's willing to go beyond the law when carrying out his duties at Bellanaboy. His obvious seniority in the chain of command is therefore worrying. So, if you go down to the woods in Bellanaboy tonight, in the words of another sergeant, be careful out there...

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Comments (7 of 7)

Some pictures of Sgt. O'Reilly

by xtic

Wed Oct 11, 2006 03:11

O'Reilly is still at large in Erris. Does anyone know where he's normally based?

Sgt. Conor O'Reilly in pensive mode

Another pic

Wed Oct 11, 2006 03:15

This garda is an unwelcome presence in Erris. Maybe you've sold him a breakfast roll or a donut?

I only want to stop the hurt...

report as it came in yesterday

by anon

Wed Oct 11, 2006 05:25

http://www.indymedia.ie/article/78913#comment170751

When I was using my arm to ask them for space I was dragged into a circle of Gardaí and Sgt. Connor O’Reilly came up to me and we were blockaded fully by Gardaí so no one could see and he just came up to me and goes “I think you deserve this,” and he hit me straight into the face.

sets the example

by reg

Mon Nov 13, 2006 19:32

Over at the bridge on one of the Lennon’s quarry exits, Sgt. Conor O'Reilly assaulted me as well. I was walking up the road towards a group gardai who had about 30 protesters hemmed into a field. I was still about 30 metres away from the cops with about 3 of Lennon’s trucks about another 30 metres back, when O’Reilly started running for me and shouting “you’ll get off the fucking road when your told”. He caught hold of me and kneed me in the thigh and flung me into the ditch. Then he made for the other 2 female protestors who were behind me and flung them into the barbed wire. One of the girls hit the barbed wire in the stomach and went head first over the wire and landed in the field which was about a 6 foot drop from the road. Damn luck she didn't catch the barb wire in the face.

I'm going to be submitting a complaint to the complaints board. Not too hopeful it'll do much good but maybe if they get enough about him, it might put him under a bit of pressure.

Saw him belt a good few people over the course of the day.

O Reilly out

by ken - supporter

Tue Nov 21, 2006 00:44

Hey there good people of bellnaboy. One thing to do is put Rat o Reilly's photos of brutality all over the place so that every one can see what he has done. His supperiors will have to take notice if ordinary people start to ask questions about his illegal activities. If that does not work then use the photos as target practice for the so called missiles'bottles and stones' that are supposed to have been used. I do not for a second believe that the S2S campaingers have used any sort of violance and do not intend to use any in the future. GOOG LUCK WITH ANY FURTHER PROTESTS no matter where or when they take place.

Toughnut looking for promotion .

by mike

Mon Nov 27, 2006 19:09

dublin

lOOkS familar maybe hes from store st in dublin . probrably got a transfer to sort out are country cousins after proving his standing in light of the recent death of the young lad terence wheelock, heard a few got promotions just be careful, up in mayo.
They take no prisoners....

cop watch bullseye

by dean lyons

Fri Dec 01, 2006 19:57

nope he was stationed in pearse st garda station.
dublin south central. drafted in by his superiors known as a hard nut around pearse st flats complex.
check it out.

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Comments (7 of 7)