US army vets guilty over airport protest

Anti-war pair broke into Shannon

- ISABEL HAYES

TWO US army veterans in their 80s have been convicted of interfering with the operation of Shannon Airport as part of an anti-war protest three years ago.

Ken Mayers, 85, and Tarak Kauff, 80, were acquitted of criminal damage to an airport perimeter fence and of trespassing with the intent to commit an offense or interfere with the property.

The jury at Dublin Circuit Criminal returned a majority verdict of guilty on the charge of interfering with the operation, safety, or management of an airport by entering the runway area and causing the airport to close.

After the verdicts were handed down, defence counsel asked that the men be allowed to return to the US and come back in a fortnight for sentence. This was opposed by the prosecution.

Judge Patricia Ryan noted the men had been found guilty of a serious charge.

She said: “They have lost the presumption of innocence.

The judge ordered them to return their passports and she set a sentence date of today.