Simon O'Donovan, 44, from Drimnagh, Dublin, appeared before the Special Criminal Court on Saturday evening and was remanded in custody after being charged with possession of explosives. He is employed at the Collins Barracks National Museum.
Arrest and charges
Detective Sergeant Shane Noone told the court that he arrested O'Donovan at 5.07pm on Saturday and informed him he would be charged with possession of explosives at St Laurence's Road in Chapelizod on Wednesday, July 22. O'Donovan represented himself in a bail hearing at the High Court, where his application for bail was refused.
Second suspect
The charges follow the interception of a car near the Irish border earlier this week. Law student Isobella Perrie Sullivan, 25, was stopped while travelling on the N2 near Carrickmacross, County Monaghan on Wednesday. During a search of her vehicle, a bag containing Semtex and a detonator was found in the rear seat, the court heard. The area was evacuated and she was arrested.
Sullivan appeared before a district court on Friday charged with possession of explosives. Her solicitor, Gavin Booth of Phoenix Law, said she had been asked to take the bag to the north and had not been aware what was in it. She was granted bail but remains in custody ahead of a further bail hearing on Monday. Booth added that she lives with her father in Kildare and wants to become a barrister.
O'Donovan is due to appear in person before the Special Criminal Court in Dublin on Monday.
