EX-OFFICER DENIED USING TACTICS AND ALTERED DETAILS
Ex-officer denied using tactics and 'altered' details
BY LESLEY-ANNE HENRY
lhenry@belfasttelegraph.co.uk
A FORMER RUC detective involved with the Omagh bomb investigation yesterday refuted suggestions that he manipulated information passed on by the Garda.
Gerry McLoughlin, a detective constable in 1998, told a landmark civil action being taken by victims' relatives he did not distort information as a means of exerting pressure on interviewees.
During his third day in the witness box at Belfast High Court, Mr McLoughlin was repeatedly asked about interview tactics used on Terrence Patrick Morgan - an employee of defendant Colm Murphy.
Mr McLoughlin read out transcripts of the interviews conducted at Strand Road RUC station in Londonderry between February 21 and 25, 1999.
He rejected suggestions put to him from Dermott Fee QC that he had "altered" the information for his "own purposes".
Mr Fee, who is representing Colm Murphy and Seamus Daly, said: "I take it Mr McLoughlin if I was to suggest you had altered this information for your own purpose, to try and put pressure on Mr Morgan, that's not something you would do." The former RUC man replied: "not at all, no."
Morgan had been arrested on suspicion of being a member of the Real IRA after his mobile phone was found to have been in the bomb car en route to Omagh.
During the five days of questioning he told police he had lent the phone to his boss the day before the bombing. Detectives were told that he believed Murphy may have needed the mobile to "move some gear" such as "rifles".
He claimed that Murphy had collected the phone after arriving at a building site at Dublin City University to distribute wages.
Colm Murphy was also arrested in February 1999 as part of the same cross border operation. He was being questioned by gardai in Co Monaghan and information was relayed to the RUC.
However, it was claimed in court that Morgan was told that his boss was effectively "looking after number one" and had said he was not in Dublin to collect the mobile phone.
This, it was claimed, was contrary to Garda notes. Said Dermott Fee QC: "You were also trying to create the impression that Murphy was being unhelpful to him.
"That was a tactic I suggest to you used against him to encourage him to go along with what your analysis of this was. Was this a tactical approach to tell Mr Morgan lies or were you not getting accurate information from the Garda, or can you not answer that because you were so far down the line?" Mr McLoughlin replied: "I have already answered that."
Five men - Colm Murphy, Michael McKevitt, Seamus McKenna, Seamus Daly and Liam Campbell - all deny any part in the Real IRA explosion that killed 29 people and injured hundreds more. Terrence Morgan was never charged with anything in connection with the Omagh bomb.
The case continues.
BY LESLEY-ANNE HENRY
lhenry@belfasttelegraph.co.uk
A FORMER RUC detective involved with the Omagh bomb investigation yesterday refuted suggestions that he manipulated information passed on by the Garda.
Gerry McLoughlin, a detective constable in 1998, told a landmark civil action being taken by victims' relatives he did not distort information as a means of exerting pressure on interviewees.
During his third day in the witness box at Belfast High Court, Mr McLoughlin was repeatedly asked about interview tactics used on Terrence Patrick Morgan - an employee of defendant Colm Murphy.
Mr McLoughlin read out transcripts of the interviews conducted at Strand Road RUC station in Londonderry between February 21 and 25, 1999.
He rejected suggestions put to him from Dermott Fee QC that he had "altered" the information for his "own purposes".
Mr Fee, who is representing Colm Murphy and Seamus Daly, said: "I take it Mr McLoughlin if I was to suggest you had altered this information for your own purpose, to try and put pressure on Mr Morgan, that's not something you would do." The former RUC man replied: "not at all, no."
Morgan had been arrested on suspicion of being a member of the Real IRA after his mobile phone was found to have been in the bomb car en route to Omagh.
During the five days of questioning he told police he had lent the phone to his boss the day before the bombing. Detectives were told that he believed Murphy may have needed the mobile to "move some gear" such as "rifles".
He claimed that Murphy had collected the phone after arriving at a building site at Dublin City University to distribute wages.
Colm Murphy was also arrested in February 1999 as part of the same cross border operation. He was being questioned by gardai in Co Monaghan and information was relayed to the RUC.
However, it was claimed in court that Morgan was told that his boss was effectively "looking after number one" and had said he was not in Dublin to collect the mobile phone.
This, it was claimed, was contrary to Garda notes. Said Dermott Fee QC: "You were also trying to create the impression that Murphy was being unhelpful to him.
"That was a tactic I suggest to you used against him to encourage him to go along with what your analysis of this was. Was this a tactical approach to tell Mr Morgan lies or were you not getting accurate information from the Garda, or can you not answer that because you were so far down the line?" Mr McLoughlin replied: "I have already answered that."
Five men - Colm Murphy, Michael McKevitt, Seamus McKenna, Seamus Daly and Liam Campbell - all deny any part in the Real IRA explosion that killed 29 people and injured hundreds more. Terrence Morgan was never charged with anything in connection with the Omagh bomb.
The case continues.
Further Information
Publisher: BELFAST TELEGRAPH
Ref: BT/1099
Published Date: 19-Jun-08
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