“PROSTITUTION is the scourge of Limerick city streets and the gardai are under significant public pressure to eradicate the matter”. Those were the comments of Judge Eugene O’Kelly, who said that the “good citizens and businesses in Limerick should not have to deal with this at their door”. He made his remarks on hearing the contested case of two men charged with soliciting two undercover gardai for the purposes of prostitution during Operation Freewheel.
The two were originally part of a 27- man group, charged with soliciting or importuning for the purposes of prostitution, last November.
Twenty-one of the men caught by undercover gardai posing as prostitutes had appeared in court in December last, and following their guilty pleas, each made contributions of €470 to Doras, and had the Probation Act applied in each of the cases, leaving them without a recorded conviction.
All 27 were charged under Section 7 of the Criminal Law Sexual Offences Act 1993.
Last week, two of the remaining six opted to contest the matter and pleaded not guilty, with their defence counsel arguing that the men were subject to the sting operation via “entrapment”.
The judge rejected the claims made by Brian McInerney, counsel for the defence, that the two men were victims of entrapment by “agents of the State”.
Evidence was given by three of the four female members of An Garda Siochana involved in the operation.
Garda Sharon Quirke, involved in the operation on November 12 and December 3 of last year, told the court that she was briefed by Sgt Martin O’Sullivan together with Garda Niamh Keogh and Garda Liz Galvin, at Roxboro Road Garda Station, as to the operation, its aims and what was to be done.
Dressed in black jeans, top and jacket, Garda Quirke took up a static post on Barrington Street on both nights and was accompanied by Garda Niamh Keogh.
Her evidence was that she noticed a man “of nervous disposition” walking towards her.
“He stopped and asked; was I working, Did I have a place close by? How much was I charging for sex and What would I get for €20?”.
The court heard that Garda Quirke did not have an opportunity to answer any of the questions put to her, and at that point she made a signal to the fellow officers seated in an unmarked garda car.
“I made the agreed hand signal and pulled at the top of my boots”.
At that point, the 53-year-old man from county Limerick was arrested and detained under the provisions of the legislation by Garda Shane Ryan.
In evidence, Garda Niamh Keogh told Judge Eugene O’Kelly that she too, made the signal to her colleagues on hearing the first two questions.
Both gardai, admitted under cross examination that they did not make notes regarding the disposition, and Garda Keogh said that she did not make any notes regarding the incident with the man, stating to the court that “he wasn’t talking to me”.
On the night of December 3, Garda Quirke was on duty dressed again in plain clothes with Garda Liz Galvin and again took up a static post on Barrington Street.
Under instruction to keep their answer both brief and vague, Garda Quirke said she was approached by a 60-year-old male and asked a number of questions.
“I was asked was I working and I said yes, How much are we charging? What was on offer? and what was I charging for sex?”
Garda Quirke told the court that the same signal was given to her colleagues, and the 60-year-old man from the city was arrested by garda Keith McCarthy.
Defence counsel for both men, Brian McInerney, applied to have the cases against his clients dismissed on grounds of material inconsistencies he noted between the official statements and the direct evidence given in court, citing entrapment where “agents of the State were masquerading as somebody else seeking to capture persons and for nondisclosure of certain evidence, namely the responses given by the female garda when asked the questions by the men”.
Garda Liz Galvin, told the court that it was her instruction during the operation to give the “bare answer and to keep it brief” if questioned by anyone regarding sex or prostitution while they stood on the street.
Noting that there were certain omissions in the statement made by gardai, Judge O’Kelly however, said that he was impressed by her honesty.
He added that the gardai were entitled to stand on the street for “whatever operation they wished without being approached and questioned about sex”.
The Judge rejected the application made by the defence and both men were convicted and fined €250 and given eight weeks to pay.
