A British Army officer shot and critically wounded at his wedding in Trim.
British Army officer Lieutenant Gary Cass was gunned down outside St Patrick's Church in Trim, County Meath as he emerged with his bride Jacqueline Johnson.
The couple left the church and were posing for photographs when three men pulled up in a car. Local DJ Neil Lacey describes what he saw happen. One of the men fired a machine gun into the air to disperse the crowd. The other two men shot at Lieutenant Cass and his bride. The gunmen made their getaway in a red Ford Cortina. The car was found burnt out in Navan.
Lieutenant Cass was rushed to Our Lady's Hospital, Navan, where he received emergency treatment for gunshot wounds to the stomach and shoulder. Another guest was slightly injured and others were treated for shock.
Shocked guests refused to talk to press indeed some furiously attacked journalists and had to be restrained by gardaí.
Some of the guests complained about the lack of security at the wedding.
Lieutenant Gary Cass a member of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers is stationed in Roxton, Hertfordshire in England. A group of British officers who travelled to Ireland for the wedding are being protected by An Garda Síochána in Trim.
The Taoiseach Jack Lynch commented that it was,
Hard to believe that any group, no matter how base could shoot down a man in cold blood in such a manner.
He added,
The crime is all the more reprehensible that it was done at the end of a marriage ceremony.
The Taoiseach wished the victims a speedy recovery and extended his sympathy to the bride and both families.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 26 August 1978. The reporter is Derek Davis.
