Dissident republican Crevan Mackin was taking a cocktail of medicines – including drugs for weight loss, severe depression and obsessive compulsive disorder – at the time he shot dead Garda Tony Golden at a house in Co Louth in October, 2015.
Mackin’s partner, Siobhán Philips, had gone to the house accompanied by Garda Golden to collect her things and leave him. But Mackin (25) opened fire, killing Garda Golden (36) and wounding the then 21-year-old Ms Philips four times before taking his own life.
Garda Golden's inquest took place last Monday in Dundalk, Co Louth. It concluded the married father of three from Co Mayo but living in Blackrock, Co Louth, had been killed unlawfully.
One of two loaded guns recovered from Mackin’s car parked outside his home had been placed in a suitcase with carrier bags containing almost 300 bullets. And the letters “INLA” had been written in pen on the outside of the case.
A 5-litre jerry can of petrol had also been purchased and brought into the house.
Mackin shot dead Garda Golden and wounded Ms Philips four times, including once to the head, on the afternoon of Sunday, October 11th, 2015. The attack occurred in the house he shared with Ms Philips, his partner and the mother of his two children, on the Mullach Alainn estate, in Omeath, Co Louth.
Statement of complaint
Ms Philips had just made a statement of complaint to Garda Golden in Omeath Garda station about the beating she had suffered at the hands of Mackin.
After the statement was completed Garda Golden accompanied Ms Philips to the house so she could collect her belongings and leave Mackin. Instead, Mackin opened fire on them before taking his own life.
The murder weapon – a Glock 17 semi-automatic pistol – and the other gun found – a Glock 22 semi-automatic pistol – had been fashioned by combining parts from different guns.
The frames of the weapons and the barrel and slide sections all had different serial numbers. The technical report on the weapons, according to the sources, said they had been “married together to form single functioning firearms”.
There has been much speculation in the 2½ years since the shooting about the circumstances and what was found at the house where it took place.
Drugs in Mackin’s name that were found at his home included the weightloss drug Xenical. A box of Fluzac tablets was also found; the drug used to treat major depressive episodes, obsessive compulsive disorder and bulimia nervosa.
Another drug he was using, Zopitan, is used to treat insomnia. Mackin was also taking Omeprazole pinewood, which is used to treat acid reflux and stomach ulcers. Also found at his home, prescribed to him, was Germentin; used to treat a range of infections.
Inquest
Crevan Mackin's inquest is scheduled to take place in May. His half-sister Sinead Hynes said he had both Asperger's and an attention deficit disorder. Tony Golden's inquest heard mention Siobhán Philips also has Asperger's.
Mackin had been arrested 10 months before the shooting when Garda received a tip-off from the FBI. The intelligence from the US was that Mackin had been buying parts of decommissioned firearms online and had them delivered to him in Ireland from the US in the postal service.
He had then been modifying and combining the decommissioned parts to repurpose them into functioning firearms.
Gardaí believe he had been selling the guns to dissident republicans and criminal elements on both sides of the Border. He was on bail at the time of his death having been charged with membership of the IRA in January, 2015, arising from a search of his home that followed the FBI tip-off.
