The Justice Minister was briefed that a €159,000 deportation operation would be cloaked in secrecy so that asylum seekers would not flee their homes or make last-gasp legal challenges.
A briefing for Jim O’Callaghan said a planned charter flight to Georgia would be challenging especially in finding and detaining the individuals identified.
The minister was told word was already spreading that people were being taken into custody with others already “evading as news of the detentions to date emerges into the public domain.”
Mr O’Callaghan was also informed there was a significant risk of legal challenge though none had been received by the time of the briefing on 20 February.
The document said: “It is expected that once the departure date becomes clear, these [legal challenges] will be lodged in the form of last-minute injunction applications.”
It said there was also a chance that deportees would use a backdoor route to reapply for asylum under international protection legislation.
The briefing explained: “The relevant unit … has been briefed and is on alert to process such applications as soon as possible with a view to ensuring that those making applications without merit continue to be available for the flight.”
The minister was told that the one-way cost of the flight would be around €102,500 with further costs of €11,590 for a team of paramedics to go with the deportees.
There would also be other costs for baggage, “light pre-flight refreshments” and ground handling services.
However, officials said it would not make sense for garda escort officers to return on a separate charter flight, which could have cost as much as €170,000.
Instead, standard flights would be booked for them bringing the total cost of the operation in late February to around €159,000.
The briefing also documented in detail the preparations as the department delayed informing even the prison authorities about their plans.
It said: “Twenty-eight potential passengers are now in detention. None as yet have challenged their detention.
“Information dissemination on the scheduling of the flight has been restricted to what is necessary. Cloverhill Prison, where the detainees are held, will be notified on Monday 24 February of our intention to remove the prisoners.”
The minister was told contact had been made with the Georgian Embassy who were helping to provide travel documents.
“Up to ninety-five garda personnel have been assigned to travel on the aircraft. The final number of gardaí will be dictated by the eventual number of deportees,” the briefing added.
A later note said the Georgian authorities had “been compliant and have completely cooperated” with all requests from the Department of Justice.
It said there were now thirty-one people in custody, which included one father while there was likely to be at least one family on the flight.
A note said: “There is one Georgian in custody on foot of criminal charges who is due for release [in June]. He is not planned to be on this charter as we have other candidates but if numbers drop, he can be put on.”
Officials added that there was another candidate with known medical issues who could also be taken back home if the number of people available to fly back began to fall.
“There are an additional eighty-four Georgians who are possibilities for this charter that are not included [so far],” the briefing said.
A Q&A was also prepared for Jim O’Callaghan in which he was told to prepare for questions on whether the mass deportations were just a “gimmick.”
If asked about that, the minister was advised to say: “It is important that people understand that the government has the capacity, as well as the will, to maintain the integrity of the immigration system by removing people who do not have a right to be here.”
Another question considered likely from journalists was whether it was a “good use of garda time.”
If asked that, the suggested answer for Mr O’Callaghan was: “Yes, it is. Deportations must be done safely and with respect for the dignity of the people being deported.”
The flight eventually took off in late February with 32 Georgian nationals aboard; a further separate charter deportation operation taking 39 people to the same country happened late last month.
Asked about the briefing documents, a spokesman said: “The department has no further comment. “The documents released show the extensive work underway in the department to increase the number of deportations. They also show the level of preparation that goes into each charter flight.”