Donna Maguire
Encyclopedia
Donna Maguire is a former volunteer
in the Provisional Irish Republican Army
(IRA) once described as Europe's most dangerous woman.
A former convent
girl from Newry, Maguire joined the IRA and was trained by Dessie Grew
according to The Independent
newspaper, who would later be killed in an ambush by the SAS
in October 1990. In early 1989 she travelled to Europe as part of an IRA active service unit
based in The Hague
and Hanover
. On 12 July 1989 Maguire and Leonard Hardy were arrested at Rosslare
, County Wexford
after arriving on a ferry from Cherbourg, and mercury switch
es, explosives and photographs of British Army
bases in Germany were seized. At their trial at the Special Criminal Court
in Dublin in February 1990 Maguire was acquitted of possession of explosives, but Hardy was sentenced to five years imprisonment. German authorities had requested Maguire's extradition
in relation to a bombing at a British Army
barracks at Osnabrück
on 19 June 1989 and the killing of a British soldier in a car bomb attack in Hanover several days later, but Maguire was not re-arrested when she left court and she immediately returned to Europe.
Maguire was arrested in Belgium near the border with the Netherlands on 16 June 1990, after a farmer reported hearing gunshots in woods and two handguns, a machine gun
and explosives were found nearby. A second IRA member was arrested with Maguire but escaped across the border before being captured by Dutch police, who also arrested a second man who had been travelling with Maguire. Maguire was extradited to the Netherlands on 6 December 1990, and in March 1991 Maguire was acquitted of the murder of two Australian tourists mistaken for off-duty British soldiers in Roermond
in May 1990, a decision which was upheld at an appeal in July of the same year, and on 7 October 1991 Maguire was extradited to Germany.
While on trial in Düsseldorf
on charges relating to the June 1990 murder of a British soldier in Dortmund
, German authorities announced on 16 November 1992 she was also being charged with attempted murder over the 1989 Osnabrück bombing. On 9 June 1994 Maguire and three other IRA members were acquitted of the Dortmund murder although the judge said it was "clear they are members of the IRA and trained as IRA volunteers", and also acquitted of involvement in the May 1990 bombing of a British Army base in Hanover. She was remanded into custody to await trial on other charges relating to the 1989 Osnabrück bombing, and in June 1995 received a nine-year prison sentence after being found guilty of attempted murder, explosives offences and spying on British Army bases in Germany with intent to sabotage. Due to the length of time spent in custody on remand—during the trial Maguire became the longest serving remand prisoner in German legal history—Maguire walked free from court.
On 17 January 1996 Maguire received £13,500 compensation due to a 1985 accident in Newry, when she tripped due to a broken paving stone. She told the court "I have had to give up dancing, jogging and swimming because the ankle swells up. I can't wear high heels and the ankle is not very stable when I walk on rough ground or gravel". The compensation award was described as a disgrace by Ulster Unionist Party
MP Ken Maginnis, and Conservative Party
MP David Wilshire
said it was shocking and obscene and called for the law to be changed. Colin Parry, who received £7,500 after the death of his 12-year-old son in the Warrington bomb attacks
, called for a review of the compensation system saying "It's a kick in the teeth. Every time these judgments come along, it reminds us how little society appears to value a child's life".
Maguire married Hardy in County Louth
in July 1996, and they have three children. Hardy was arrested in August 2005 while on a family holiday in Torremolinos
, Spain and extradited to Germany in January 2006 to face charges over his role in the 1989 Osnabrück bombing. In April 2006 Hardy was found guilty of attempted murder and deliberately causing an explosion and was sentenced to six years imprisonment. It later transpired Hardy was not sent to prison and had left the court via a side door with Maguire, and a spokesperson for the Federal Ministry of Justice
issued a statement saying that "Leonard Hardy is not in detention".
Volunteer (Irish republican)
Volunteer, often abbreviated Vol., is a term used by a number of Irish republican paramilitary organisations to describe their members. Among these have been the various forms of the Irish Republican Army and the Irish National Liberation Army...
in the Provisional Irish Republican Army
Provisional Irish Republican Army
The Provisional Irish Republican Army is an Irish republican paramilitary organisation whose aim was to remove Northern Ireland from the United Kingdom and bring about a socialist republic within a united Ireland by force of arms and political persuasion...
(IRA) once described as Europe's most dangerous woman.
A former convent
Convent
A convent is either a community of priests, religious brothers, religious sisters, or nuns, or the building used by the community, particularly in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Anglican Communion...
girl from Newry, Maguire joined the IRA and was trained by Dessie Grew
Dessie Grew
Desmond "Dessie" Grew , was a volunteer in the East Tyrone Brigade of the Provisional Irish Republican Army . Grew was killed by undercover British Army soldiers in County Armagh in 1990 along with fellow IRA volunteer, Martin McCaughey.-Background:Grew was the second eldest in a family of seven...
according to The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
newspaper, who would later be killed in an ambush by the SAS
Special Air Service
Special Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...
in October 1990. In early 1989 she travelled to Europe as part of an IRA active service unit
Active Service Unit
An active service unit was a Provisional Irish Republican Army cell of five to eight members, tasked with carrying out armed attacks. In 2002 the IRA had about 1,000 active members of which about 300 were in active service units....
based in The Hague
The Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
and Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
. On 12 July 1989 Maguire and Leonard Hardy were arrested at Rosslare
Rosslare Europort
Rosslare Europort is a modern seaport located at Rosslare Harbour in County Wexford, Ireland, near the southeastern-most point of Ireland's coastline, handling passenger and freight ferries to and from Wales and France....
, County Wexford
County Wexford
County Wexford is a county in Ireland. It is part of the South-East Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Wexford. In pre-Norman times it was part of the Kingdom of Uí Cheinnselaig, whose capital was at Ferns. Wexford County Council is the local...
after arriving on a ferry from Cherbourg, and mercury switch
Mercury switch
A mercury switch is a switch whose purpose is to allow or interrupt the flow of electric current in an electrical circuit in a manner that is dependent on the switch's physical position or alignment relative to the direction of the "pull" of earth's gravity, or other inertia.Mercury switches...
es, explosives and photographs of British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
bases in Germany were seized. At their trial at the Special Criminal Court
Special Criminal Court
The Special Criminal Court is a juryless criminal court in the Republic of Ireland which tries terrorist and organized crime cases. Article 38 of the Constitution of Ireland empowers the Dáil to establish "special courts" with wide-ranging powers when "the ordinary courts are inadequate to secure...
in Dublin in February 1990 Maguire was acquitted of possession of explosives, but Hardy was sentenced to five years imprisonment. German authorities had requested Maguire's extradition
Extradition
Extradition is the official process whereby one nation or state surrenders a suspected or convicted criminal to another nation or state. Between nation states, extradition is regulated by treaties...
in relation to a bombing at a British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
barracks at Osnabrück
Osnabrück
Osnabrück is a city in Lower Saxony, Germany, some 80 km NNE of Dortmund, 45 km NE of Münster, and some 100 km due west of Hanover. It lies in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest...
on 19 June 1989 and the killing of a British soldier in a car bomb attack in Hanover several days later, but Maguire was not re-arrested when she left court and she immediately returned to Europe.
Maguire was arrested in Belgium near the border with the Netherlands on 16 June 1990, after a farmer reported hearing gunshots in woods and two handguns, a machine gun
Machine gun
A machine gun is a fully automatic mounted or portable firearm, usually designed to fire rounds in quick succession from an ammunition belt or large-capacity magazine, typically at a rate of several hundred rounds per minute....
and explosives were found nearby. A second IRA member was arrested with Maguire but escaped across the border before being captured by Dutch police, who also arrested a second man who had been travelling with Maguire. Maguire was extradited to the Netherlands on 6 December 1990, and in March 1991 Maguire was acquitted of the murder of two Australian tourists mistaken for off-duty British soldiers in Roermond
Roermond
Roermond is a city, a municipality, and a diocese in the southeastern part of the Netherlands.The city of Roermond is a historically important town, on the lower Roer at the east bank of the Meuse river. It received city rights in 1231...
in May 1990, a decision which was upheld at an appeal in July of the same year, and on 7 October 1991 Maguire was extradited to Germany.
While on trial in Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
on charges relating to the June 1990 murder of a British soldier in Dortmund
Dortmund
Dortmund is a city in Germany. It is located in the Bundesland of North Rhine-Westphalia, in the Ruhr area. Its population of 585,045 makes it the 7th largest city in Germany and the 34th largest in the European Union....
, German authorities announced on 16 November 1992 she was also being charged with attempted murder over the 1989 Osnabrück bombing. On 9 June 1994 Maguire and three other IRA members were acquitted of the Dortmund murder although the judge said it was "clear they are members of the IRA and trained as IRA volunteers", and also acquitted of involvement in the May 1990 bombing of a British Army base in Hanover. She was remanded into custody to await trial on other charges relating to the 1989 Osnabrück bombing, and in June 1995 received a nine-year prison sentence after being found guilty of attempted murder, explosives offences and spying on British Army bases in Germany with intent to sabotage. Due to the length of time spent in custody on remand—during the trial Maguire became the longest serving remand prisoner in German legal history—Maguire walked free from court.
On 17 January 1996 Maguire received £13,500 compensation due to a 1985 accident in Newry, when she tripped due to a broken paving stone. She told the court "I have had to give up dancing, jogging and swimming because the ankle swells up. I can't wear high heels and the ankle is not very stable when I walk on rough ground or gravel". The compensation award was described as a disgrace by Ulster Unionist Party
Ulster Unionist Party
The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland...
MP Ken Maginnis, and Conservative Party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
MP David Wilshire
David Wilshire
David Wilshire is a Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom. He was the Member of Parliament for Spelthorne in Surrey from 1987 to 2010....
said it was shocking and obscene and called for the law to be changed. Colin Parry, who received £7,500 after the death of his 12-year-old son in the Warrington bomb attacks
Warrington bomb attacks
The Warrington bombings were two separate bombing attacks that happened during early 1993 in Warrington, England. The first attack happened in February when a bomb exploded at a district pressure gas storage facility. It caused extensive damage but no injuries; however, a police officer was shot...
, called for a review of the compensation system saying "It's a kick in the teeth. Every time these judgments come along, it reminds us how little society appears to value a child's life".
Maguire married Hardy in County Louth
County Louth
County Louth is a county of Ireland. It is part of the Border Region and is also located in the province of Leinster. It is named after the town of Louth. Louth County Council is the local authority for the county...
in July 1996, and they have three children. Hardy was arrested in August 2005 while on a family holiday in Torremolinos
Torremolinos
Torremolinos is a municipality on the Costa del Sol of the Mediterranean, immediately to the west of the city of Málaga, in the province of Málaga in the autonomous region of Andalusia in southern Spain...
, Spain and extradited to Germany in January 2006 to face charges over his role in the 1989 Osnabrück bombing. In April 2006 Hardy was found guilty of attempted murder and deliberately causing an explosion and was sentenced to six years imprisonment. It later transpired Hardy was not sent to prison and had left the court via a side door with Maguire, and a spokesperson for the Federal Ministry of Justice
Federal Ministry of Justice (Germany)
The Federal Ministry of Justice is a federal ministry in Germany.Under the federal system of Germany, individual states are most responsible for the administration of justice and the application of penalties. The Federal Ministry of Justice devotes itself to creating and changing law in the...
issued a statement saying that "Leonard Hardy is not in detention".