Gardaí likely to look for source of newspaper's 'blind eye to drugs' claim
Sunday Independent journalist Jim Cusack and the editor of the paper Aengus Fanning will come under pressure from gardaí to reveal the source of claims in the newspaper that officers turned a blind eye to celebrities taking illegal drugs.
The Garda Ombudsman Commission has ordered an investigation after an article was published yesterday containing details which it describes as being "without any apparent grounding in fact".
Solicitor with Associated Newspapers Michael Kealey said he would expect the garda line to be: "If you have evidence, give us the evidence and we will go after these people…
"Don’t be saying to us there are drug dealers out there who gave drugs to Gerry Ryan, (that) everybody knows who it is and (that) the authorities aren't doing anything about it."
Meanwhile, RTE has responded to criticism of its decision not to comment publicly on the details of the death of Gerry Ryan, including about the role played by cocaine in his death, which were released at his inquest.
The state broadcaster has said it refrained from offering comment on the nature of Mr Ryan's death out of respect and sympathy for the star's family.
In a statement, the former star's employer also rejected some suggestions that RTÉ is a tolerant place in respect of illegal drugs, saying "such claims are not only unwarranted and unfounded, they are deeply unfair to RTÉ’s staff".
