25.12.04
Guardian
Special Branch link to Omagh atrocity
Officer may have made anonymous warning call
Owen Bowcott
Friday December 24, 2004
The Guardian
The six year long investigation into the Omagh bombing - the worst single atrocity of the Troubles - took an extraordinary turn yesterday when it was revealed that a Special Branch officer is to be questioned for allegedly telephoning through an anonymous warning.
The officer, who has not been identified, is now the chief suspect for making the call received by detectives in the County Tyrone town 11 days before the outrage.
The car bomb, which killed 29 people and unborn twins on August 15 1998, was carried out by the Real IRA. Only one person has been convicted for taking part in the attack.
The Guardian has been told the anonymous call, made at 10am on August 4 to a CID officer in Omagh, contained detailed information, including the names of five republican suspects. The information was never passed on to police on the ground.
The fact that the call was made has been known for some time but the source of the call has never been traced. The Special Branch officer is to be asked if he made the call, and if so, why.
In the call, he named those who he claimed would be bringing across the Irish border four dismantled AK-47 rifles and two rocket launchers belonging to the Continuity IRA which, he said, would be used in an attack on police in Omagh on August 15. At the time the Real IRA and Continuity IRA were effectively indivisible.
The caller claimed the weapons would be stored at a house close to the village of Beragh, outside Omagh, and then moved to another address in advance of the attack. The telephone conversation lasted between 10 and 15 minutes and the caller claimed he would contact the police again the following evening.
The CID officer who took the call believed the caller to be genuine, briefed the senior detective on duty and then travelled to Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, where he informed Special Branch officers.
They allegedly told him there was nothing in the information and that the two men named were ordinary criminals. However, one of the officers asked that he be present in the Special Branch office in Omagh the next day for the second call. It never came.
The Omagh atrocity has been the subject of successive investigations over the years, including one by the Northern Ireland police ombudsman, Nuala O'Loan, which produced a scathing condemnation of an earlier police inquiry.
Mrs O'Loan found that officers had ignored warnings, failed to act on crucial intelligence or question key suspects, and that the investigation itself was a catalogue of mistakes. The Police Association contested her report but later withdrew a legal challenge.
Relatives of the victims have in the past pressed for a judicial inquiry into the affair.
The latest development is likely to highlight what has, at times, been an awkward relationship between Special Branch and uniformed officers.
Relatives of the victims were angered by the revelation. Michael Gallagher, whose son Aidan was among the dead, said: "It's devastating. That call was always a concern to the families and we are still awaiting answers. It seems to me to be the final straw in a long line of discrepancies."
Godfrey Wilson, whose daughter Lorraine, 15, died in the bombing, said: "If ever there was a need for a full cross-border inquiry, then this is it. How much longer do we have to wait to get justice?"
It is known that the August 4 call and the text of the information were never registered on the database which was set up for the huge police investigation and it was not until two years later, during a review of the inquiry by the Royal Ulster Constabulary, that officers in Omagh became aware it had been made. After the bombing, it was later discovered, someone had written across the information sheet: "Nothing to do with Omagh".
It is understood the new suspect has not yet been questioned. Assistant Chief Constable Sam Kinkaid, who is overseeing the investigation, declined to comment on the new line of inquiry.
He said the police service continued to dedicate significant resources to investigating the atrocity. "All matters examined by the investigation team will be forwarded to the DPP [Director of Public Prosecutions] for his directions."
A high court action by some of the victims' relatives who have accused five men of being responsible for the bombing is expected to begin in Belfast next year. They are seeking £10m in compensation.
A crown court trial is also due to start of Sean Hoey, 34, of County Armagh, who is facing charges involving explosives and membership of the Real IRA. One of the charges against him involves possession of a timer power unit between March 1997 and August 16 1998, the day after the Omagh bombing.
Special Branch link to Omagh atrocity
Officer may have made anonymous warning call
Owen Bowcott
Friday December 24, 2004
The Guardian
The six year long investigation into the Omagh bombing - the worst single atrocity of the Troubles - took an extraordinary turn yesterday when it was revealed that a Special Branch officer is to be questioned for allegedly telephoning through an anonymous warning.
The officer, who has not been identified, is now the chief suspect for making the call received by detectives in the County Tyrone town 11 days before the outrage.
The car bomb, which killed 29 people and unborn twins on August 15 1998, was carried out by the Real IRA. Only one person has been convicted for taking part in the attack.
The Guardian has been told the anonymous call, made at 10am on August 4 to a CID officer in Omagh, contained detailed information, including the names of five republican suspects. The information was never passed on to police on the ground.
The fact that the call was made has been known for some time but the source of the call has never been traced. The Special Branch officer is to be asked if he made the call, and if so, why.
In the call, he named those who he claimed would be bringing across the Irish border four dismantled AK-47 rifles and two rocket launchers belonging to the Continuity IRA which, he said, would be used in an attack on police in Omagh on August 15. At the time the Real IRA and Continuity IRA were effectively indivisible.
The caller claimed the weapons would be stored at a house close to the village of Beragh, outside Omagh, and then moved to another address in advance of the attack. The telephone conversation lasted between 10 and 15 minutes and the caller claimed he would contact the police again the following evening.
The CID officer who took the call believed the caller to be genuine, briefed the senior detective on duty and then travelled to Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, where he informed Special Branch officers.
They allegedly told him there was nothing in the information and that the two men named were ordinary criminals. However, one of the officers asked that he be present in the Special Branch office in Omagh the next day for the second call. It never came.
The Omagh atrocity has been the subject of successive investigations over the years, including one by the Northern Ireland police ombudsman, Nuala O'Loan, which produced a scathing condemnation of an earlier police inquiry.
Mrs O'Loan found that officers had ignored warnings, failed to act on crucial intelligence or question key suspects, and that the investigation itself was a catalogue of mistakes. The Police Association contested her report but later withdrew a legal challenge.
Relatives of the victims have in the past pressed for a judicial inquiry into the affair.
The latest development is likely to highlight what has, at times, been an awkward relationship between Special Branch and uniformed officers.
Relatives of the victims were angered by the revelation. Michael Gallagher, whose son Aidan was among the dead, said: "It's devastating. That call was always a concern to the families and we are still awaiting answers. It seems to me to be the final straw in a long line of discrepancies."
Godfrey Wilson, whose daughter Lorraine, 15, died in the bombing, said: "If ever there was a need for a full cross-border inquiry, then this is it. How much longer do we have to wait to get justice?"
It is known that the August 4 call and the text of the information were never registered on the database which was set up for the huge police investigation and it was not until two years later, during a review of the inquiry by the Royal Ulster Constabulary, that officers in Omagh became aware it had been made. After the bombing, it was later discovered, someone had written across the information sheet: "Nothing to do with Omagh".
It is understood the new suspect has not yet been questioned. Assistant Chief Constable Sam Kinkaid, who is overseeing the investigation, declined to comment on the new line of inquiry.
He said the police service continued to dedicate significant resources to investigating the atrocity. "All matters examined by the investigation team will be forwarded to the DPP [Director of Public Prosecutions] for his directions."
A high court action by some of the victims' relatives who have accused five men of being responsible for the bombing is expected to begin in Belfast next year. They are seeking £10m in compensation.
A crown court trial is also due to start of Sean Hoey, 34, of County Armagh, who is facing charges involving explosives and membership of the Real IRA. One of the charges against him involves possession of a timer power unit between March 1997 and August 16 1998, the day after the Omagh bombing.
