The killers of Det Garda Jerry McCabe are continuing to enjoy full visiting rights at Castlerea Prison, Roscommon, despite visiting hours having been curtailed for most other inmates because of cutbacks in overtime.
Visits on Mondays and Tuesdays have been cancelled at the 206-bed Castlerea facility for all but 32, mostly subversive, inmates. These are housed in domestic accommodation in a separate wing of the prison known as "the grove".
The group still enjoying full visits includes IRA men Pearse McAuley and Kevin Walsh, who are serving 14- and 12-year prison sentences for the manslaughter of Det McCabe during a botched armed raid in Adare, Co Limerick, in June 1996.
Also among the inmates unaffected by the visiting restrictions are Kevin Walsh, Jeremiah Sheehy, and Michael O'Neill who were also part of the gang that killed Det McCabe and wounded his partner Det Garda Ben O'Sullivan.
On the first day of the visiting cutbacks yesterday three inmates, including McAuley, received visitors. The men have been granted temporary release in the past, which has angered Det McCabe's family and Garda representative groups.
The Irish Prison Service said the men were not being afforded preferential treatment. A spokesman said they were a small group among more than 30 inmates who will not be affected by the cutbacks. A number of non-subversive prisoners were among the group.
Visits have been curtailed at the main prison because reduced overtime budgets mean manpower is no longer available to staff visiting rooms. The prison service said the running of "the grove" is not a labour intensive operation, with visits only requiring minimal staff cover.
The decision to curtail visits at Castlerea follows similar moves in Mountjoy in Dublin, and in Limerick as governors adjust to running facilities on reduced budgets. Workshops and training courses have also been cancelled in at least three other jails.
