The dramatic arrest of 44-year-old Aughnacloy businessman Vincent McAnespie, in front of his wife and six children has shocked the local community on the Tyrone-Monaghan border. The family lawyer who was present said the incident involving police tactical unit officers was "as ugly as I have ever seen".
The building contractor's family is also greatly alarmed and upset that Mr McAnespie was branded as a "dissident republican" in the swoop on the family home which coincided with the arrest in Omagh of Independent Republican election candidate Gerry McGeogh.
Mr McAnespie's wife Brenda, who captained the all-Ireland winning Monaghan Ladies Gaelic football team and who is now a Sinn Féin county counillor in Monaghan, told the TyroneHerald, "'When the police arrived at our door they had arrest warrants which referred to my husband as a 'dissident republican'. This is totally untrue as Vincie and myself have been ardent supporters of Gerry Adams and we played active parts in persuading the anti-PSNI republicans to vote for the change at the special Ardfheis."
The raid happened at 6.15pm on Thursday as the McAnespie children were watching television at the family home in Aghaloo Close, Aughnacloy. They had just returned from an aunt's funeral and were watching the election count coverage.
Family lawyer Plunkett Nugent, who rushed to the scene when contacted, said the behaviour of the police who had been dispatched from Mahon Road in Portadown, was totally out of proportion to the task.
"It typified all that was wrong with policing in the past," said Mr Nugent. "It is a long, long time since I have seen children as terrified."
Brenda McAnespie said that she and her husband have been actively involved in the peace process. Although she did not know Gerry McGeogh, she said, "I'm sure his family are going through the same concern for his well-being".
She said her sister-in-law, Eilish McCabe, who lives next door arrived to help and was physically manhandled by the police.
"She is undergoing chemotherapy at present and the last thing she needs is this. There was also a young mother, (Eilish's daughter) there with her four-week old baby. The police were antagonistic and verbally abusive to Eilish outside the house. There were a lot of people arrived, too, but I did not want any trouble or to make things worse."
Vincent and Eilish's brother Aidan McAnespie was shot by the British Army in Aughnacloy in 1988 in highly controversial circumstances as he was walking to the local playing field of Aghaloo GFC in which the entire McAnespie family are deeply involved.
Vincent McAnespie was taken to Antrim police station for questioning, as was Gerry McGeogh who had been the count centre at Omagh Leisure Centre. He was arrested in the car park by police who had beein lying up in wait for the Brantry farmer who stood as an independent republican in Fermanagh and South Tyrone.
It is believed the two men are being interviewed about an incidnet in the early 1980s.
Following the arrest in Omagh, Dungannon DUP Cllr Samuel Brush spoke to reporters at the count about a 1981 shooting attack on him when he was a UDR soldier. He was shot several times but he was saved by his bullet-proof vest.
Sinn Féin MP Michelle Gildernew described the arrests as "disgraceful stunts".
"Gerry (McGeough) has been living openly in this constituency for some time. He's a neighbour of mine; we live in the same townland and he could have been arrested at any time."
"Another constituent Vincie McAnespie was arrested in Aughnacloy. His house was raided, his sister was assaulted and on the warrant it said he was a dissident republican, which is absolutely not true. He is an active member of this party.
"This is one of the worst examples of political policing and the reason why we have to get rid of the people that are involved in creating this kind of mayhem on the day of an election."
The 32-county sovereignty movement also condemned the "politically motivated" arrest of Gerry McGeough.
A spokesman said, "This disgraceful arrest is not only an attack on his mandate and on the nationalist people but is also a clear message that the RUC/PSNI hasn't changed and despite assertions from Provisional Sinn Féin the RUC will still carry out political policing functions at the behest of the British security establishment."
