A court was told Supt Gavin O’Reilly also said the garda would “lose his job” for arresting him
A court was told Supt Gavin O’Reilly also said the garda would “lose his job” for arresting him, and shouted about ringing the assistant commissioner.
Evidence was continuing today in Mr O’Reilly’s trial for smacking a phone out of a bar manager’s hand as she recorded him after he allegedly racially abused a bouncer.
The confrontation happened after Mr O’Reilly and friends had been asked to leave a popular Dublin city centre gay bar where they had been on a night out. Denying the allegations, the accused maintains he never called the bouncer a “black b***ard” and did not know it was a phone that was being “shoved in his face” when he “swiped it away.”
Mr O’Reilly is pleading not guilty at Dublin District Court to assaulting Emma Parks and engaging in threatening, abusive or insulting behaviour outside Pennylane pub, Strand Street Great on August 26, 2023.
Garda Supt Gavin O’Reilly
Ms Parks said she asked the accused and his two friends to leave to get “a bite to eat” because they were noisy and she believed they had too much to drink. She said Mr O’Reilly returned, got “in her face” with clenched fists and bared teeth, shouting that she was “never going to work again” and he was “going to get this place f**king shut down.”
She said he told her his name, that he was a garda superintendent and that he knew the owner.
A security man from neighbouring Panti bar, which is in the same ownership, came over.
Today, the bouncer, Marcos Peter Inacio, from Brazil, told prosecutor John Griffin BL that Mr O’Reilly was standing close to Ms Parks, shouting and being verbally aggressive.
He said he grabbed the accused’s shoulder and said “listen, get away from her.”
“That is when he unfortunately became racist, saying ‘get your hand off me, you black bastard’”, he said.
Ms Parks began recording with her phone and Mr O’Reilly “slapped” it, Mr Inacio continued.
He and another security guard put Mr O’Reilly to the ground and the accused “started saying he was a guard and to let him go.”
Emma Parks. Photo: Tom Tuite
When they let him up, “he threatened me, he said he would find me when I left,” Mr Inacio said.
In cross-examination, defence barrister Garnet Orange SC said there was nothing more than a “heated conversation,” when Mr Inacio intervened.
Mr Inacio said he acted to protect Ms Parks.
“Emma Parks was in no danger whatsoever at that stage and you simply went over and manhandled my client out of the way,” Mr Orange said.
“He never used that sort of language towards you, he never mentioned anything about your colour at any stage,” the barrister said.
He put it to the witness that he had “towered over” the accused and dragged him away from Ms Parks who began recording.
“My client hadn’t a clue what was going on, all he could see was an object being shoved in his face and he swiped it away and that is the extent of it,” Mr Orange said.
He put it to Mr Inacio Ms Parks had been “trying to provoke a reaction” from the accused.
Mr Inacio said this was “one more reason” he intervened.
Ms Orange argued this was evidence that Ms Parks “acted as an agent provocateur with a view to entrapping my client.” He asked Judge John Hughes to dismiss the case but he refused.
Garda Eoin Naughton said when he went to the scene the accused told him who he was. The garda did not know him and when asked for identification, Mr O’Reilly “kept shouting at us that he didn’t need to produce his ID.”
“He was roaring and shouting in a threatening manner towards us,” he said.
Mr O’Reilly was arrested and put in the back of a patrol car while Gda Naughton called his superiors. Mr O’Reilly “stated to me that I had no right to arrest him,” he said. The accused got out of the parked car and shouted about ringing the assistant commissioner, Gda Naughton continued.
“He said I’d lose my job over the arrest, he was going to sue me for €100,000 because of the arrest and tried to urinate on the street,” Gda Naughton said.
Mr O’Reilly returned to the car and was later released pending further investigation.
In cross-examination, Mr Orange said a trainee garda who had also been at the scene made a statement saying he recognised the accused after seeing him during a Pride parade. The trainee heard Mr O’Reilly “whisper very quietly” to Gda Naughton that he was a superintendent.
Garda Supt Gavin O’Reilly. Photo: Tom Tuite
News in 90 Seconds,Wednesday, September 10
Gda Naughton recalled that it was loud.
Mr Orange said there was “good reason” the accused was annoyed as he felt he had been “assaulted, set up, pushed around the place and held against his will.” He said he was telling Gda Naughton he could be “sued for false imprisonment because you had made a false arrest.” He was also “pleading” to go somewhere he could go to the toilet.
Gda Naughton denied that he “utterly exaggerated” his evidence. He clarified for Judge Hughes that his description of the accused’s behaviour in their earlier encounter was more “upset” than “threatening”. However, he was threatening when he said Gda Naughton would lose his job.
Garda Graham Johnson said when the allegations were put to the accused, he replied that it was “all lies.”
The trial continues tomorrow.