By Mark Thompson
The weapon used by the UVF to murder Roseanne Mallon and injure Bridget Mallon was a VZ58 Czech made replica of the AK47 that used Chinese ammunition– it was part of a consignment of weapons imported to Ireland in December 1987 by MI5 agent Brian Nelson and distributed to loyalists.
This murder weapon was also used on an attack at Boyles Bar, Cappagh, County Tyrone, killing Thomas Armstrong, Malcolm Nugent, Dwayne O’Donnell, and John Quinn. Others were also injured in that attack. It was also used to murder Charles and Teresa Fox at their home, Moy, County Tyrone.
RFJ have been privately aware of this linkage for this past fortnight and have been in contact with the families concerned. We believe there are more linkages.
However, the RUC at the time of the murder of Roseanne stated that the weapon had no previous use at all. We now know that to be a deliberate lie. The question is why? Is the same agent involved – sorry we mean loyalist gunman?
Today it was also revealed that not only did the RUC lie they also made that statement within 18 hours of the murder via a ballistic report that in itself poses serious questions. Coroner said he was confused as it normally took months for ballistics to be conducted…how so soon the court asks?
It was also revealed today that a red Sierra car, similar to one of two cars reported to be acting suspiciously outside the Mallon home on the day of the attack was stopped by a regular patrol shortly after the murder. It contained three men who threw from the car balaclavas and gloves. The car also contained petrol canisters and other suspicious items.
The home of the driver was searched and over 1,000 rounds of ammunition and a gun were also found. All three were ruled out of inquiries though within hours.
A Peugeot car containing Billy Wright and two other suspects was stopped in the Portadown area and all three taken to Geough barracks for questioning.
Their clothes were taken for forensic examination. The court heard today that they too were ruled out of inquiries within hours. It was also revealed that the decision to rule all three out was taken despite the fact that the forensic results were not yet completed. Strange that too…
It was also revealed that the most senior Special Branch officer for that region, Frank Murray, had contacted the head of CID for the region, DCI McBurney, telling him that there was a covert operation in place at the time of the attack but that there was nothing of an evidential value or significance from the operation.
Murray relayed this information a matter of hours after the murder. The actual murder investigation team on the ground was not made aware of any covert operation until local people accidentally discovered secreted cameras 8 weeks after the attack. Even then it took several months before the ‘ordinary’ RUC detectives in CID had any access to some of the tape recordings of the operation. Edits of edits of edits was how we put this in previous blogs…
In evidence last week to the inquest court a Special Branch officer, known as P5 speaking from behind a screen to conceal his identity, said that he had only received the tapes for the day of the murder on may 10th, two days after the murder.
P5 also said that it took several days to analyse the tapes and write up the reports.
So how then was Murray able to say there was nothing of an evidential value when the recordings were not yet observed and vehicles noted etc.? The Coroner too found that strange…
And what of the suspicious cars the red Sierra and the actual car used in the attack that was later found burnt out, remembering the petrol canister found in the red Sierra?
Well we’ll never know as these particular tapes have been destroyed, along with notebooks of Special Branch officers. And nobody who knows or can answer those questions is available to the court…
Murray had since died.
McBurney is not able to give evidence as he not well. And Eric Anderson is also sick; we’ve said a fair bit about him being sick in previous blogs too…
There’s a familiar pattern here in that heads of CID and Special Branch work closely in protecting agents, informers and sources.
Readers to the blog will also note that individual Special Branch officers burnt their paperwork – the Coroner making references to bonfires in back gardens…
However, one Special Branch (SB-50) intelligence source report, heavily redacted has appeared. Today public interest immunity was used to prevent its redaction being lifted for the Mallon family lawyers to examine further and question two Special Branch officers. This was rejected after a short adjournment.
Lawyers did ask if any of the suspects arrested along with Wright and those in the red Sierra car were agents or informers. Both Special Branch officers refused to answer the questions – which were repeated several times and in several ways despite the mantra of we can neither confirm nor deny.
The question remains one to be pursued, and the coroner surprisingly stated that the matter of Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights pertained to those still alive and not those deceased, which is interesting when one considers Billy Wright.
So the bottom line is that within hours the murder weapon is deliberately lied about – the suspects are ruled out despite forensics not being available and the tapes covered nothing on the day prior to the attack even though the tape recordings had not been viewed…
Coincidence or collusion – you decide!
Oh and the HET submit two differing reports one that makes specific mention of an intelligence ballistics report and one which doesn’t – interesting as the RUC – sorry PSNI, get to grips with possibly a leak in the system re the murder weapon.
More containment after more containment after the murders?
Containment is containment is containment = concealment, concealment, concealment = collusion, collusion, collusion
