GARDA KILLER Martin McDermott spent last night behind bars at a properly secure prison – and will serve his sentence there.
The thug who killed Garda Gary McLoughlin was handed back across the Border yesterday after skipping out of the holiday camp that is Loughan House in Co Cavan in March.
But this is where serial criminal McDermott is now held; at the Midlands Prison in Portlaoise.
Garda Gary McLoughlin, 24, from Fenagh, Co Leitrim, died 24 hours after being injured when McDermott deliberately drove his car at his vehicle on the main Letterkenny to Derry road at Burt in December 2009.
Drink driver McDermott, 26, from Raphoe, was jailed for seven years last July after being found guilty by a jury of the manslaughter of Garda McLoughlin. He had 91 previous convictions.
Unfortunately he will be back on the streets of Donegal next year.
He escaped from Loughan House in March – after being sent there by the prison service despite having escaped from there before.
Gardai fear he will commit crimes again once he is back here.
“Martin actually comes from a lovely family. His people are the best you will ever meet, but he himself is programmed to commit crime,” said one Garda.
“Unless he finds God or is a sudden convert to the laws of this land, we will be dealing again with more serious crime from him.
“We believe our system is failing; not just in this case but in many others. I am fed up reading comments on donegaldaily about criminals getting away with crime.
“People don’t realise most of the time that we do actually bring these people before the courts but after that it is the judges and the prison service who are in charge and they have to apply the laws given to them by politicians.
“In America people like McDermott would never be allowed out of prison again. Here, they are.”
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