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Chief Supt Says Any Escalation In Traveller Feud Will Be Met With Swift Action From Gardaí

Chief Superintendent Pat O’Sullivan said any further criminal behaviour will be met with an immediate response from the gardaí and he said doesn’t want to see a return to the days when there were armed gardaí on the streets of Tralee as there was in 2009.

The Chief Supt was speaking to Jerry O’Sullivan on the ‘Kerry Today’ programme on Radio Kerry earlier this morning.

Four men and a 15 year old boy appeared in Tralee court on Wednesday charged with offences relating to an incident in Rath cemetery the previous day, in which a man received stab injuries. They were granted bail on a number of conditions including that they stay out of Kerry apart from court appearances.

However, it is understood as the men were making their way out the county they came into contact with five men in Castleisland, three of whom appeared on Thursday in Cahersiveen District Court charged with engaging in threatening, abusive and insulting language and a breach of the peace .

The three men, all from Tralee, were released on bail on condition that they don’t leave an area within five miles of Tralee, and will appear again at Tralee District Court in January.

“This type of behaviour will not be tolerated,” he said. “Our local district officer in Tralee, Jim O’Connor, had an immediate response on Tuesday and again on Wednesday while the court was ongoing. I would appeal to these Travellers not to take part in any form of criminal behaviour. If they do there will be an immediate response from the gardaí in Tralee,” he said.

“This is between the Faulkner and the McCarthy’s and goes back over 10 years where one of the Faulkners was killed in Tralee in August 2004. The feud goes back to before 2004,” Chief Supt Pat O’Sullivan told Radio Kerry.

“We have had serious incidents with a number of Travellers in Kerry down through the years. We all saw what went on in Tralee in 2009/2010 where we had 23 Travellers imprisoned. We don’t want to see armed gardaí on the streets of Tralee. They’re [the feuding Travellers] giving the town a very bad name,” he said.

The Chief Supt said the gardaí in Tralee are available at any time to facilitate a solution to the feud between the Faulkner and McCartney families, but he warned both sets of people who appeared in court to abide by the bail conditions set down by Judge  James O’Connor in Tralee and Cahersiveen.

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Watch as Tralee funeral murder victim’s powerful feud declaration captured on video before brutal knifing in graveyard

• Stephen Breen
• Published : 21:31, 6 Oct 2022
• Updated : 21:45, 6 Oct 2022
• Published : Invalid Date,

MURDER victim Tom Dooley insisted he and his family were not involved in any feud in a recent social media video.

Dooley, 43, was knifed in front of shocked mourners at New Rath cemetery in Tralee, Co Kerry on Wednesday morning.

His wife Siobhan, also in her 40s, suffered a number of stab wounds after trying to intervene and is in a critical condition at Kerry University Hospital.

Gardai investigating the fatal assault were tonight questioning two men after they were arrested throughout the day.

A man in his 40s was arrested this morning in Cork city and was taken to Tralee Garda Station for questioning.

He was detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act and can be questioned for up to 24 hours.

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Tralee locals fear 'further loss of life' after man & wife stabbed at graveside

Tralee funeral stabbing victim knew killer as Gardai make terrifying discovery

Another man arrested, who is in his 30s, was tonight still being questioned by detectives in Tralee.

He was also arrested in Cork city.

As news of the arrests emerged, a video surfaced on social media of the late Tom Dooley where he denied his family were involved in a feud.

In footage shared online, he said: “Right listen, this is me, Tom Dooley here, I’m one of the Dooleys from Killarney, and I’m saying it now, and it’ll be only said once, never again: that the Dooleys have nothing to say to nobody, and the Dooleys have nothing got to do with this feud.

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“There’s no Dooleys getting involved in no feud.”

It’s believed popular Dooley knew his killer and his death is linked to an on-going personal dispute.

An incident room has been established at Tralee Garda Station, and gardai are appealing for witnesses to contact them.

Close family friend and Councillor Donal O’Grady said he fears more lives could be lost .

PLEA FOR PEACE

He told Virgin Media News: “I would be afraid of further loss of life, I would.

“I’m asking and I’m pleading with the families and with those involved, whoever they are, I don’t know, but stop.

“Stop now because this is where we live.”

Local priest Fr Tadhg Fitzgerald, who officiated the funeral and graveside prayers, said the brutal attack has added to the grief of those attending the service.

He told RTE’s Morning Ireland: “We were at a funeral of a very young woman, a 48-year-old mother, wife, grandmother. A woman that was very loved by many, many people.

“There was great respect, it was a beautiful service. Even in the sadness and the grief, there was a great sense of celebration of her life.”

He continued: “Violence is never justified and it added to the sadness and that something like this would happen at the burial of a young woman.

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“The graveyard itself is quite a large cemetery and it’s a place where there’s a real atmosphere of prayer and respect always within with walls of the graveyard.

“So this has added to a sense of shock, sadness.”

• An Garda Siochana

• Entertainment

Feuding Galway factions enter into tentative mediation talks after spate of violence across city

The feuding factions involved in a shocking violent incident in a Galway shopping centre car park last weekend are entering into tentative mediation talks, the Irish Mail on Sunday has learned.

Martin Collins, Pavee Point codirector, said the Athlone-based National Traveller Mediation Service is trying to intervene and ‘broker some discussions’.

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‘I understand there is some work on that [mediation] taking place… over the weekend,’ Mr Collins told the MoS.

‘I obviously welcome that and I hope that the disputing parties will get involved and hopefully try and put the issue to bed.’

However, Mr Martin cautioned that attempts to bring both sides of the dispute into a mediation process are challenging.

‘I would say, any kind of peace process – if I can call it that, not to be too alarmist – talks can break down,’ he warned.

‘I think that is inevitable in some respects, but I would encourage people to stick with it and to keep on trying.’

Four people required treatment in hospital after a car collided with a group of people at a shopping centre on the Headford Road, Co. Galway, last Sunday.

A large number of people were involved in the car park altercation, which was filmed and widely shared on social media.

The incident was linked to an ongoing feud between two Traveller families in the Galway area.

A number of raids were carried out by gardaí this week across numerous areas in Galway following a spate of violence across the city. Gardaí seized several weapons and vehicles at Headford Road on Sunday evening.

A Garda spokesperson yesterday confirmed three more people were arrested in connection with the incident, bringing the total number of arrests to 15. A Garda public order unit is now on standby to deal with potential further violence.

Responding to public concern about the scale of the violence, Mr Collins said: ‘It is important that people don’t suggest this behaviour is inherent in our culture because that stereotype has been peddled and it is not acceptable.

‘It is not inherent in our culture – it is not inherent in our ethnicity.

‘These are just a number of individuals who are engaging in dangerous behaviour, and it is not representative of the Traveller community, so I hope the majority of the population will not further stigmatise Travellers because of a behaviour of a few. Those who are guilty need to be prosecuted and those who are innocent should not be persecuted.’

Asked why Pavee Point had not come out to condemn the violence before this, Mr Collins explained: ‘The situation is we didn’t want to be the first in the media. We have been a little bit reluctant to make any media comment.

‘We wanted the media to confirm whether or not it was members of the Travelling community and effectively, by us engaging with the media, we were doing that, so there is an issue here of principle.

‘I think The Pat Kenny Show was the first mainstream media outlet to reference the fact they were Travellers – I’m not aware of any other mainstream media. We think it is really unnecessary for people to emphasise the ethnicity of the people concerned.

‘It is totally irrelevant. It’s not an issue – it just so happens that they are Travellers.

‘Of course, this is in a wider context of antisocial behaviour and feuding right across the country and we have seen that in the North Inner City [in Dublin] in the last while where various incidents have taken place and some tourists have been attacked and I haven’t seen anybody in the mainstream media identifying their ethnicity as members of the settled community. I think there is an issue of ethics here and fair play, so we don’t think it’s really necessary in our view to emphasise the ethnic affiliation of those concerned – it’s irrelevant.’

Mr Collins urged the people involved in the feud to ‘exercise restraint’.

He told the MoS: ‘We don’t want to see any further escalations of tensions because there is a real potential of people being seriously hurt – or worse, some people potentially losing their lives – and we would call on the parties concerned to engage in mediation.

‘It’s in the public domain now that they are members of the Travelling community. I just hope that people won’t generalise and stereotype all Travellers as inherently violent. This is not representative of the Travelling community. The vast majority of Travellers are just getting on with their lives leading a peaceful life. So I hope people won’t generalise and use this as a stick to beat all Travellers with.’

Gardaí in Galway continue to appeal to those who were in the College Road and Headford Road areas in Galway, between 5.45pm and 6.45pm on Sunday evening, and observed any violent behaviour, to contact them. Individuals with camera footage from the area – including dash cam recordings – are urged to provide this material to the gardaí.

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Ireland's most adorable pet competition returns this summer

Pets of all types in ireland are welcome to be entered in the (positively adorable) nose of tralee competition for 2024..

The Nose of Tralee, Ireland’s most loved annual pet competition, is back for its 11th year.

Last year, 1,500 pets participated in the Nose of Tralee, a cheeky riff on the world-famous Rose of Tralee International Festival .

To enter the Nose of Tralee, pet owners simply need to upload a photo of their pet and share why they deserve to be the next Nose of Tralee.

All types of pets are welcome to enter the Nose of Tralee - previous years have seen horses, pigs, birds, and much more enter!

The smile-inducing competition is open to residents in all 32 counties of Ireland.

Ozzy represented Co Galway in the 2023 Nose of Tralee.

After a public vote and evaluation by a judging panel, 32 finalists will be chosen to represent each county in Ireland.

The grand winner of the Nose of Tralee will then be announced on August 20 following an online public vote.

Florence represented Co Fermanagh at the 2023 Nose of Tralee.

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Kate McQuillan, Owner of Pet Sitters Ireland, expressed her enthusiasm: “We are delighted to return for the 11th year and can’t wait to see the incredible variety of pets that will enter.

"The Nose of Tralee is the highlight of our year, and I know many pet owners have been eagerly awaiting their chance to participate.

"We're excited to read all the wonderful reasons why each pet would make a great Nose of Tralee and to see which county will claim the title from last year’s winner, Stitch from Limerick.”

While Stitch claimed the top prize last year, Winston from Co Louth was the runner-up.

Winston from Co Louth, the runner-up for the Nose of Tralee 2023. (Courtesy Petsitters Ireland)

The winner of the 2024 Nose of Tralee not only wins the coveted title, they also win a €250 Pet Sitting Voucher From Pet Sitters Ireland, a €500 Store Voucher From Tesco Ireland, and a photo shoot with David McAuley Photography. 

The Nose of Tralee runner-up will receive a €100 Pet Sitting voucher and a €150 Tesco voucher.

Pet owners can submit their entries for the Nose of Tralee online  here . There is no entry fee and no purchase necessary to enter, but entrants must be resident in Ireland and can only enter their pet in the county in which they reside. 

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• Court & Crime

Feuding Clare families who produced chainsaw during row 'not Bord Fáilte material for Ennis'

Bernard McDonagh 'is the driving force behind the feud at this time', court told. File picture

A chainsaw was one of the weapons allegedly produced during a “horrible, unsavoury” incident last Sunday afternoon at an Ennis housing estate.

At Ennis District Court after viewing CCTV evidence of the flashpoint at Davitt Terrace, Cloughleigh at 12.30pm last Sunday afternoon, solicitor for three accused men in the case, Daragh Hassett, admitted the video “is not Bord Fáilte material for Ennis”.

On Wednesday, Mr Hassett told the court: “It is unsavoury. It is horrible and it shouldn’t have happened but my clients say they are not guilty of the charges before the court.” 

Mr Hassett said the CCTV footage produced by the State doesn’t help the State case in the charges against his clients.

Mr Hassett said the footage showed one man with an “active chainsaw”, who is not one of his own clients.

Objecting to bail against the three accused, Bernard McDonagh, 55, Thomas McDonagh, 21, and Michael McDonagh, 32, all of the unofficial halting site at Kilrush Rd, Ennis, Detective Garda Noelle Bergin said a feud between two sides of the wider McDonagh family is currently "volatile".

The charges against the three McDonaghs arise from the three allegedly going to the property of cousins at Davitt Terrace, Cloughleigh, last Sunday afternoon.

Thomas McDonagh is charged with producing a slash hook during the incident while Bernard McDonagh and Michael McDonagh are each charged with producing a knife in the course of a dispute.

Thomas McDonagh is also facing three counts of alleged criminal damage.

Det Bergin said: “This is an incident which is part of an ongoing feud between two Traveller families. A number of persons arising from this feud are currently before the courts charged with serious offences.”

She said: “It is the Garda belief that tensions between both sides are extremely high”.

Det Bergin added that Bernie McDonagh is the father of the McDonaghs and alleged he “is the driving force behind the feud at this time”.

Mr Hassett said his instructions are that "there is no feud, there is nothing to row about”.

The solicitor said there are tensions around the recent death by suicide of a man in the wider McDonagh family “and about the acceptance and non-acceptance by family members about what could have been done to stop their relative from taking his own life. This will be resolved in time."

Mr Hassett said one of his clients, Michael McDonagh “lost a child recently and that has been used by his cousins to taunt him”.

He said one of the complainants against his three clients put a video on YouTube that injuries he got were self-inflicted to try to bring charges against someone else.

Mr Hassett said his clients live in an unofficial halting site that was a recent "cause celebre" in the Supreme Court where the court decided the McDonagh family should stay there.

He argued that bail could be granted to his clients with strong conditions, such as daily signing on and curfews with a cash lodgement.

However, Judge Mary Larkin refused bail to all three and remanded them in custody to re-appear in court via video link on June 8 next.

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Weapons seized in Traveller feud

Gardaí in Tralee have seized a number of slash hooks and other weapons in a feud-related incident on Sunday night.

Two men involved in a fight near Rath cemetery were treated for injuries at Kerry General Hospital and one weapon was recovered.

Follow-up searches of vehicles in the town centre led to the further seizures.

The incident is the most serious in a series of minor complaints over the past week, sparking fears that the feud which has affected most of Kerry’s leading Traveller families may be reigniting.

Most of the 20 Travellers jailed last winter at Tralee District Court for feud-related offences have been released.

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