The RUC knew within two months of the Loughinisland massacre that a police agent had been involved but failed to arrest him, security sources confirmed yesterday.
The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) informant code-named ‘Mechanic', who provided the getaway car used in the June 1994 murder of six Catholics, told his handlers of his role in the killing spree in August 1994.
He revealed to police the names of the paramilitaries he gave the red Triumph Acclaim to, but stressed that he did not know what the vehicle was to be used for – a claim still accepted by security sources.
Within days of his admission the RUC arrested a number of people in Belfast and Co Down in connection with murders. They were later released without charge.
Despite his involvement in Loughinisland, ‘Mechanic' was not arrested and allowed to continue to work for the RUC until 1997 when his cover as an informer was blown. With the UVF determined to kill him he was spirited out of the North and given £10,000 by the RUC. During a police debriefing session after his exodus he again admitted his role in the Loughinisland attack.
A security source offered a reason as to why ‘Mechanic' was never charged. He said: “This man's role [in Loughinisland] was a very minor one. I am 100 per cent certain that when he got the car he had no knowledge of what it was to be used for. He was a valuable informant who kept the RUC well briefed on UVF activities in north Belfast. Arresting him for this would have been counterproductive,” added the source.
“There was hardly any evidence to charge him with anyway, all the police had was a non-recorded admission which could easily be retracted. He had no knowledge of what the car was to be used for, of that I am certain.”
Eamon Byrne, Barney Green, Malcolm Jenkinson, Daniel McCreanor, Patrick O'Hare and Adrian Rogan died in the Loughinisland attack. They were watching Ireland play Italy in a World Cup match when the UVF gang struck.
The Police Ombudsman is currently probing the RUC's original Loughinisland investigation. A separate ombudsman probe into allegations of collusion between a north Belfast UVF unit based in the Mount Vernon estate and the RUC Special Branch is also expected to mention the massacre. Agent ‘Mechanic' was a leading member of this gang.
Last week his close friend and former Mount Vernon UVF boss Mark Haddock was seriously injured in a gun attack by his former colleagues.
Haddock, who was also an RUC agent, is recovering in hospital. It is believed he provided the PSNI with information that led to the arrest of a man and a woman in Belfast on Tuesday in connection with the Loughinisland massacre. Both were released without charge.
June 09, 2006
