Punk rocked

The first Roscommon D-I-Y & Punk Festival ended in controversy last week when the Gardaí raided the Knockroghery pub where it was taking place.

According to organiser Cormac Sheehan: “At around 7 o’clock on Saturday night, 25 uniformed officers barged their way into Batty O’Brien’s and preceded to search everyone in the venue. Some had their pockets and wallets gone through, while others were taken off and given a full stripsearch. As far as I’m aware, the only things they confiscated were a small amount of cannabis and a girl’s birth control pills.”

Sheehan also accuses a number of Gardaí of serious misconduct.

“One girl, from Athlone, was knocked over and rendered unconscious,” he claims. “Somebody else was kicked in the stomach, but fortunately neither of them required hospital treatment. On top of that, none of the officers I encountered had numbers on their uniforms, or were willing to identify themselves when asked.”

Given that the opening night of the festival had passed off without incident, Sheehan was surprised by the scale of the operation.

“It was the largest Drugs Squad bust in the Midlands for a few years, which given that there were only 400 people at the gig was a complete overreaction,” he continues. “The mood in the Garda camp afterwards was pretty downbeat, with one officer muttering about it being ‘a complete waste of time.’”

While acknowledging that some villagers may have been “freaked out” by so many punks arriving on their doorstep, Sheehan is adamant that most were in favour of the festival.

“The general consensus was that it was good for business. £500 was raised for Temple Street Children’s Hospital in Dublin – a large chunk of which came from local shopkeepers who’d seen their takings for the weekend doubled.”

Responding to the accusations leveled at his men, Superintendent Rhattigan of the Roscommon division told hotpress: “The Inspection of the Premises – namely Batty O’Brien’s – took place two weeks ago and, at this time, there have been no complaints lodged against the Gardaí. There were no arrests, although a number of items were taken from individuals and have been sent away for forensic examination.

“As for identifying numbers, Gardaí in this part of the country are not required to wear them.”

Asked whether they were responding to complaints from local residents, the Superintendent said, “I won’t make any comment on that.”