OUR FIGHT GOES ON
Our fight goes on
Omagh families vow to pursue �1.6m damages
BY DEBORAH McALEESE
CRIME CORRESPONDENT
dmcaleese@belfasttelegraph.co.uk
THE Omagh families today vowed to fight on to collect the damages awarded to them from the four men responsible for killing their loved ones.
Michael Gallagher, whose son Aiden (21) was murdered, said yesterday's landmark victory in the High Court would be "hollow" if they did not pursue the �1.6m awarded to them by Justice Declan Morgan.
"It is not to make us wealthy but it is to hold to account those people and make sure they pay the penalty. It would only be a hollow victory if we did not," he said.
The families' legal representative, human rights lawyer Jason McCue, said there may be "elements that make the pursuit of damages more difficult" but he added that "it is not impossible".
The families are planning to take immediate action to enforce the historic judgement. They will consider seeking orders to seize properties and freeze bank accounts in Ireland, Britain, Europe and America.
Following a successful civil case yesterday Real IRA leader Michael McKevitt and three other men - Liam Campbell, Colm Murphy and Seamus Daly - were found to be responsible for the terrorist attack in August 1998.
It is not yet known what assets the men have available. However, it is understood that Murphy and Daly both accumulated a substantial amount of wealth in the building trade.
McKevitt also lived in a wealthy area of Co Louth before he was jailed in 2003 on charges of Real IRA membership and directing terrorism.
Neighbouring properties in Beech Park, Blackrock, are currently selling for between �765,000 and �900,000.
Campbell also led an affluent life on a ranch-style house set in five acres of land outside Dundalk before he was arrested in May on suspicion of obtaining a false passport as part of an alleged arms smuggling plot. He is said to have become rich through border smuggling.
The relatives of those killed and injured have also now vowed to continue their battle for a full cross-border inquiry into the atrocity.
"The curtain can never be pulled in Omagh until both governments co-operate and tell the truth," said Mr Gallagher.
"I think there is a lot to learn from the Omagh bomb and that is what a public inquiry can do. It is not always about finding fault with people. There are many things that were done right in Omagh and those things should be passed on and the things not done well should be improved on.
"There are benefits to public inquiries. We know it is not an easy fight because there is a lot of resistance to public inquiries. That resistance is largely based on the cost. But it does not need to cost a lot if it is structured properly."
Twenty-nine people, including a woman pregnant with twins, were killed when the Real IRA bomb exploded, but no-one has been convicted of murder.
The investigation into the bombing has been the subject of controversy since 2001, when it was heavily criticised by the then Northern Ireland police ombudsman Nuala O'Loan.
This was renewed when the only person charged in Northern Ireland, Sean Hoey, was acquitted in December 2007.
In the Republic, the conviction against Colm Murphy was found to be unsafe by the Court of Criminal Appeal. It was this lack of successful prosecutions that spurred some relatives to pursue the route of a civil case.
Yesterday 12 relatives successfully sued Michael McKevitt, Liam Campbell, Colm Murphy and Seamus Daly in an eight-year landmark civil case. Mr Justice Morgan found the defendants, including the Real IRA, liable for damages.
"What the Real IRA did was outside the law and we have proven that, if the criminal justice system is not capable of delivering some justice, at least civil law is, and that's a very strong message we send around the world," said Mr Gallagher.
Omagh families vow to pursue �1.6m damages
BY DEBORAH McALEESE
CRIME CORRESPONDENT
dmcaleese@belfasttelegraph.co.uk
THE Omagh families today vowed to fight on to collect the damages awarded to them from the four men responsible for killing their loved ones.
Michael Gallagher, whose son Aiden (21) was murdered, said yesterday's landmark victory in the High Court would be "hollow" if they did not pursue the �1.6m awarded to them by Justice Declan Morgan.
"It is not to make us wealthy but it is to hold to account those people and make sure they pay the penalty. It would only be a hollow victory if we did not," he said.
The families' legal representative, human rights lawyer Jason McCue, said there may be "elements that make the pursuit of damages more difficult" but he added that "it is not impossible".
The families are planning to take immediate action to enforce the historic judgement. They will consider seeking orders to seize properties and freeze bank accounts in Ireland, Britain, Europe and America.
Following a successful civil case yesterday Real IRA leader Michael McKevitt and three other men - Liam Campbell, Colm Murphy and Seamus Daly - were found to be responsible for the terrorist attack in August 1998.
It is not yet known what assets the men have available. However, it is understood that Murphy and Daly both accumulated a substantial amount of wealth in the building trade.
McKevitt also lived in a wealthy area of Co Louth before he was jailed in 2003 on charges of Real IRA membership and directing terrorism.
Neighbouring properties in Beech Park, Blackrock, are currently selling for between �765,000 and �900,000.
Campbell also led an affluent life on a ranch-style house set in five acres of land outside Dundalk before he was arrested in May on suspicion of obtaining a false passport as part of an alleged arms smuggling plot. He is said to have become rich through border smuggling.
The relatives of those killed and injured have also now vowed to continue their battle for a full cross-border inquiry into the atrocity.
"The curtain can never be pulled in Omagh until both governments co-operate and tell the truth," said Mr Gallagher.
"I think there is a lot to learn from the Omagh bomb and that is what a public inquiry can do. It is not always about finding fault with people. There are many things that were done right in Omagh and those things should be passed on and the things not done well should be improved on.
"There are benefits to public inquiries. We know it is not an easy fight because there is a lot of resistance to public inquiries. That resistance is largely based on the cost. But it does not need to cost a lot if it is structured properly."
Twenty-nine people, including a woman pregnant with twins, were killed when the Real IRA bomb exploded, but no-one has been convicted of murder.
The investigation into the bombing has been the subject of controversy since 2001, when it was heavily criticised by the then Northern Ireland police ombudsman Nuala O'Loan.
This was renewed when the only person charged in Northern Ireland, Sean Hoey, was acquitted in December 2007.
In the Republic, the conviction against Colm Murphy was found to be unsafe by the Court of Criminal Appeal. It was this lack of successful prosecutions that spurred some relatives to pursue the route of a civil case.
Yesterday 12 relatives successfully sued Michael McKevitt, Liam Campbell, Colm Murphy and Seamus Daly in an eight-year landmark civil case. Mr Justice Morgan found the defendants, including the Real IRA, liable for damages.
"What the Real IRA did was outside the law and we have proven that, if the criminal justice system is not capable of delivering some justice, at least civil law is, and that's a very strong message we send around the world," said Mr Gallagher.
Further Information
Publisher: BELFAST TELEGRAPH
Ref: BT/1145
Published Date: 09-Jun-09
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