A SENIOR Garda watchdog investigator, who was arrested and investigated for attending a party for gangster Gerry Hutch, has been released.
The man, 60s, was arrested by detectives from the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation yesterday, having met with them earlier this week.
The party took place at a house in north Dublin the night Hutch walked free from the Special Criminal Court after being acquitted of the murder of David Byrne.
During his first meeting with Gardai, he admitted that he had attended the party on April 17 for Hutch after he was cleared of the murder of David Byrne at the Regency Hotel on February 5, 2016.
He was arrested on suspicion of disclosing information and gardai feared he could flee Ireland.
The property where he lives was searched and electronic devices, including his phone, were seized.
They investigated if he communicated with associates of ‘The Monk’ in a series of text messages.
A file is be prepared for the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Gardaí confirmed that investigations are ongoing.
A garda spokesperson said: “The male in his 60s has been released without charge from the provisions of Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984.
“A file will now be prepared for the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
“Investigations are ongoing.”
Meanwhile, the experienced GSOC member has since resigned after he told colleagues he attended the party.
Justice Minister Simon Harris said he has been informed of the man’s arrest.
Speaking to reporters at the Annual Delegate Conference of the Prison Officers Association in Galway yesterday, he said: “I think what today shows is the appropriateness of the decision to refer this matter from GSOC to the gardai.
“I have said since first becoming aware of this, that it was important that if there was any potential criminal wrongdoing, that the only place for that to go in terms of an investigation was an Garda Siochana.
“I think what we’re now seeing is the gardai taking this seriously, and applying the appropriate level of priority to this matter.”
Harris also met with GSOC commissioners earlier this week.
He is confident the garda watchdog are taking the scandal “extraordinarily seriously”.
However, GSOC says it is not its policy to investigate itself, and Minister Harris stressed that allowing them to investigate the scandal was never going to happen, “nor would it ever be acceptable”.