Three men before the Special Criminal Court filmed a video warning that “an eye for an eye is going to be our approach going forward” as part of a plan to attack a mosque in Galway, The Irish Times reported. The defendants admitted to planning an attack on the Maryam Mosque in November 2025 using sledgehammers and pipe bombs before law enforcement intervened.
Inside the ‘Shadows of Eire’ Conspiracy
The three-judge, non-jury Special Criminal Court heard how the defendants formed a right-wing extremist splinter group known as the “Irish Defence Army” in October 2025. Detective Inspector Alan McDevitt detailed that the organisation broke away from the larger Irish Citizens Army, adopting an aggressive anti-immigration agenda. Operating under the cover of encrypted messaging applications, the men established a Signal group chat titled “Shadows of Eire” to share technical instructions and coordinate their operations. According to reporting by the Irish Mirror, Garrett Pollock utilized artificial intelligence to design a manual for constructing improvised explosive devices, which he then distributed to fellow members.
The blueprint for the Galway attack involved coordination. Entry and exit points of the Monivea Road property were identified. The tactical blueprint required two men equipped with sledgehammers to smash the building’s windows while others hurled pipe bombs inside. The perpetrators intended to force open the compound’s gates with sledgehammers before making their escape, planning to burn both their getaway vehicle and the tools afterwards.
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The Portlaoise Traffic Stop That Foiled the Bombing
The plot unraveled on November 4, 2025, when a Garda drug unit intercepted a black BMW in Portlaoise carrying Karolis Peckauskas and Garrett Pollock. A search of the vehicle yielded a trove of tactical equipment, including a Tricolour flag, cable ties, tactical vests, hatchets, a lump hammer, knives, face masks, pipe cap ends, and five litres of peroxide suited for manufacturing explosives.
When questioned by gardaí at the scene about the weapons and precursor chemicals, Pollock told officers, “We’ve done nothing yet.” Subsequent searches of a van parked outside Peckauskas’s home in Drogheda uncovered a hidden drawer containing four IEDs packed into glass jars. Prosecutors charged all three men—Peckauskas (39), of Newfoundwell Road, Drogheda, Co Louth; Darren Gorman (34), of O’Moore Place, Portlaoise, Co Laois; and Pollock (36), of Kilhorne Greene, Annalong, Co Down—with attempting to engage in terrorist activity aggravated by hatred.
Threats Against Accommodation Providers and Broader Targets
Before executing the operation, the conspirators recorded a video statement taking responsibility for the intended destruction of the Galway mosque. In the footage, they asserted that legitimate targets would also include estate agents and anyone who “facilitate the development of accommodation for international protection applicants.” The recording included warnings directed at anyone helping to establish IPAS centers, hotels, and accommodation.
The court heard that the defendants stated they would not target women or children “unless the woman is a threat to our country or loved ones.” Defense legal teams presented mitigation arguments highlighting how the men were drawn into extremist circles online. Representing Peckauskas, barrister Morgan Shelley told the court that his client offered his “sincere remorse and a sincere apology” to the mosque-going community in Ireland, adding that the defendant had become radicalized after consuming conspiracy theories online. Legal representatives for Gorman and Pollock are scheduled to deliver their pleas in mitigation when the court reconvenes.
