Gardaí have referred several people for prosecution for publicly identifying the two boys convicted of the murder of Ana Kriégel.
An investigation began into the identification of the two 14-year-olds after photographs of them spread on Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp after they were convicted in June.
Interviews have been ongoing since then with gardaí focusing their efforts on those who initially posted the photographs online. The investigation is being led by gardaí in Leixlip where Ana was murdered.
The boys, who were 13 when they carried out the murder, are entitled to anonymity due to their age. It is an offence, punishable by up to three years in prison and a €10,000 fine, to identify anyone under 18 accused or convicted of a criminal offence. They were referred to only as Boy A and Boy B during the trial.
The recommendation for prosecution was first reported in the Irish Daily Star on Wednesday. It stated that 10 files had been sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
A garda spokesman confirmed that “a number of files have been submitted to the DPP” and stated that investigations are continuing.
“Gardaí stress that the court order preventing persons from naming Boy A and Boy B are still in place,” he added.
It will be up to the DPP to decide if prosecutions will be initiated. It is understood any prosecutions would be the first of their kind and would likely take place in the District Court.
Contempt
As well as criminal charges, the suspects could also face separate contempt of court proceedings as the boys’ anonymity was the subject of an order by trial judge Mr Justice Paul McDermott.
The two accused were convicted on June 18th of murder of Ana (14) on May 14th, 2018, at Glenwood House, Laraghcon, Clonee Road, Lucan, Dublin.
Boy A was also convicted of sexual assault “involving serious violence” of Ana on the same occasion. The Central Criminal Court is currently awaiting the completion of psychological reports on the boys ahead of their sentencing in October.
Circulation of photographs of the boys on social prompted the DPP to initiate contempt of court proceedings against Twitter and Facebook. Mr Justice Michael White ordered the social media firms to remove any identifying information as soon as they become aware of it being shared on their platforms. The companies agreed to the order which will remain in place until November.
The hearing was one of a number of contempt proceedings which arose out of the high profile seven-week trial.
A journalist was fined €2,500 last month for accidentally naming Boy A during a radio interview the day after his conviction. The radio station, Red FM, was fined €10,000.
Associated Newspapers, the publisher of the Irish Daily Mail, was also fined €25,000 for a front page headline published early in the trial which was found to be prejudicial to the boy's case. The newspaper's editor Sebastian Hamilton was also fined €4,500.
