CCTV Tapes That Could Solve The Death Of Offaly Man Mysteriously Turn Up 13 Years Later

Shane Tuohey

By Justin Kelly

CCTV footage that could solve the disappearance and death of Shane Tuohey in 2002 have been found 13 years after they were reportedly lost by Gardai, according to reports from journalist Philip Boucher-Hayes.

Writing on his website, Boucher-Hayes stated that he has seen “correspondence which shows that 13 years on the tapes have been found, and the truth about what happened may now be established.”

Shane Tuohey went missing after a night out in Clara in February 2002, and after a week long search, his body was discovered by his brother in the River Brosna. Although his family suspected foul play in Shane’s death, Gardai treated his death as a suicide. They collected CCTV tapes from around the town while investigating at the time, but they allegedly went missing while in Garda possession.

This meant that nobody’s movements could be verified from the night in question, and there was allegedly a lot of evidence suggesting that Shane Tuohey had been assaulted. Two individual coroner’s reports concluded homicide in his case. The tapes collected by Gardai would have been crucial to any investigation, but two separate Garda investigations were carried out without the use of the tapes, following their disappearance.

In the post on his personal website, Boucher-Hayes wrote: “On the basis of what he had been told, the then Garda Commissioner, Noel Conroy, wrote to me in 2006 confirming the tapes hadn’t been available to the investigation team. He wrote that a more professional investigation would have made reference to the CCTV which should have been available. But it would appear that somebody in An Garda Siochana deliberately or accidentally misinformed the Commissioner’s office because I have obtained correspondence which indicates that 17 tapes related to the investigation are in Portlaoise Garda station in addition to other unspecified evidence.”

These tapes may reveal Shane’s last movements, or could corroborate or contradict the statements given by those questioned in the aftermath of the man’s death. Boucher-Hayes wrote: “What is even more puzzling is that it is evident that nobody looked at the tapes. The file sent to the DPP with a Garda recommendation that there was no foul play involved makes no mention of any CCTV evidence.”

Shane’s father Eamonn and his brother Edwin now aim to get their hands on these tapes, and provide them to the Independent Review Mechanism in the Department of Justice that is currently reviewing Shane’s case. During the course of his work on this story, Philip Boucher-Hayes contacted the Garda Commissioner’s office to ask whether or not the tapes will now be handed over to that Independent Review Mechanism, but their reply gave very little away, reading as follows: “As the independent review team is examining this matter, it would not be appropriate for us to comment on it. An Garda Siochana is co-operating fully with the independent review team and will continue to provide them with any information they require.”

The Department of Justice are yet to comment on how they plan to proceed, and both the rediscovery of the tapes after 13 years and Shane’s death itself remain a mystery.