Siege man acquitted on all but one charge

Date Published: 21-May-2009

A JURY in the trial of an armed man involved in a siege situation with Gardaíin Gort town over two years ago, acquitted him of three charges relating to the use of firearms with intent to endanger life – but found him guilty of having two shotguns and ammunition in suspicious circumstances in relation to the same incident, following an eight-day trial at Galway Circuit Criminal Court last week.

Anthony Burke, aged 42, of 67 Crowe Street, Gort, had denied during his two-week trial, that he was in possession of two shotguns and 1400 shotgun cartridges with intent to endanger life at Crowe Street, Gort, between 11pm on October 8, and 8.20pm on October 9, 2006.

He also denied a charge of being in possession of the shotguns in suspicious circumstances during the siege. His defence team argued during the trial, which is estimated to have cost the State in the region of €300,000 to prosecute, that Burke was a “good shot”, holding a “Class B” shot rating, on a scale which goes from Class D to Class AA, and that if he had intended to endanger anyone’s life or shoot anyone during the siege he could have easily done so.

Burke told the jury…