A member of the Garda is under investigation on suspicion he tried to hire a person online to carry out an arson attack on the home of his former partner while she was present.
It is alleged the Garda member wanted the woman to be killed in the fire.
The investigation, which is being carried out by the Garda’s Anti-Corruption Unit, is focused on communications on the darknet sent by a person based in Ireland to another darknet user who was supposedly offering to carry out violent attacks for payment.
However, while a sum of bitcoin was paid to the person offering violence as a service, they then ceased communication with the darknet user based in Ireland. The bitcoin, a relatively modest sum, was lost in what appears to have been a scam.
Leading Kinahan cartel figure Sean McGovern being extradited from UAE to Ireland
Independents Barry Heneghan, Gillian Toole vote against Coalition and in favour of Sinn Féin’s pro-Palestine Bill
Gardaí fear mother was held captive in Dublin ‘house of horrors’ for many years
John Magnier tells Barne Estate trial that money does not mean much to him except as a way ‘to keep score’
The darknet is essentially a secretive and covert part of the internet – a private network – where all users go by pseudonyms.
In response to queries, Garda Headquarters confirmed a member of the force had been suspended but made no further comment on the continuing investigation or the precise nature of the inquiry.
“As part of an ongoing investigation being conducted by the Garda Anti-Corruption Unit into alleged serious criminality, a garda based in Dublin is suspended from duty,” it said.
The Irish Times understands detectives began a criminal investigation into the alleged plot to pay for a fatal arson attack after receiving a tip-off about activity between two parties on the darknet.
Even though the darknet user who believed they were paying for an arson attack to be carried out fell victim to a scammer, the messages they sent, trying to organise an attack, appeared to be genuine. While the Garda member under investigation has been suspended from duty, he has not been arrested and no findings have been reached against him.
Because the efforts to solicit a violent attack in exchange for payment were made on the darknet, the case poses technical challenges. Gardaí must first investigate if the Garda member authored and sent the messages rather than another party.
It was not until the technical aspects of the investigation were complete that any arrests could be made. However, the matter is being treated as a priority case and the investigation was expected to progress quickly.
Establishing the identity or location of darknet users is much more difficult compared with the conventional internet. Users access the darknet via a special browser, rather than the mainstream routes such as Microsoft Edge or Chrome.
