YOU THOUGHT YOU WERE CLEVER
You thought you were clever� but you didn't figure on people like us
Omagh campaigner's message to the men behind the worst atrocity of the Troubles
BY LESLEY-ANNE HENRY
lhenry@belfasttelegraph.co.uk
TEN years, eight months and 24 days after the worst terrorist atrocity in Northern Ireland's history, a judge finally said who is to blame for the act of mass murder that was the Omagh bombing.
At Belfast High Court yesterday, Justice Declan Morgan awarded record damages totalling �1.6m to the relatives of six people who died in the Real IRA atrocity.
The judge found four men, Michael McKevitt, Liam Campbell, Seamus Daly and Colm Murphy, responsible for the planning, production, planting and detonation of the 5001b car bomb that ripped through the Co Tyrone town, killing 29 people - including unborn twins - on August 15, 1998.
And in a legal first anywhere in the world, he also ruled that the Real IRA dissident republican terror group was liable.
A case against south Armagh construction labourer Seamus McKenna was dismissed.
Campaigning relatives of Geraldine Breslin (43), Aiden Gallagher (21), Esther Gibson (36), Anne McComb (45), Alan Radford (16) and Lorraine Wilson (15) launched the unprecedented civil action after criminal proceedings failed to bring anyone to account.
To fund the ground-breaking civil action, the bereaved families raised �1.2m and were awarded a special status legal aid grant of almost �800,000 by the British Government. Trial in the case opened last March and concluded in April of this year.
Yesterday saw the plaintiffs granted compensation of between �80,000 and �350,000. But none are likely to see much of that money.
Addressing the packed courtroom, Mr Justice Morgan said there was "compelling evidence" against four of the defendants and described it as "inexplicable" that none had taken the stand.
Michael McKevitt, who is currently serving a sentence for directing terrorism in Portlaoise prison, was described as an RIRA leader with responsibility for procurement.
The judge said: "Michael McKevitt held and has always held a significant leadership role within the Real IRA, which is reflected by the fact that he was certainly its leader in August 1999."
He said there was "cogent evidence" that Liam Campbell had been a member of the RIRA Army Council and held an important leadership position within the terror group. Phone evidence showed he had directed the attack on Omagh.
The court was also told that Colm Murphy had been an "active member" of the Continuity IRA, which carried out the attack along with the RIRA and had lent his mobile phone to the bombers "knowing full well the nature of the attack which was going to be conducted."
Seamus Daly, said to have been an RIRA foot soldier, was linked to the explosion by phone records.
Speaking outside the court, victims' spokesman Michael Gallagher said: "It was better than we could ever have expected. I think we have sent a message to terrorists that from now on you don't only need to worry about the authorities; the families of those victims will come after you. The message to victims around the world is that we have created a
precedent and those other people who have been victims of terrorism can use this vehicle. The message to governments is if you do not do it, we will do it.
"My message to the four men found liable for Omagh is You think you were clever enough to cover up your tracks and get away with it. But you didn't figure on people like us standing up and using all the resources of the law'.
"What we have done is within the law, 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. That's a very strong message we can send around the world.
"This was not about the money. But we will pursue the money. We will punish those people in every way that we can. That's the only way that we can do it. We will make sure, if we can, that terrorism is not a profitable business to be in."
Omagh campaigner's message to the men behind the worst atrocity of the Troubles
BY LESLEY-ANNE HENRY
lhenry@belfasttelegraph.co.uk
TEN years, eight months and 24 days after the worst terrorist atrocity in Northern Ireland's history, a judge finally said who is to blame for the act of mass murder that was the Omagh bombing.
At Belfast High Court yesterday, Justice Declan Morgan awarded record damages totalling �1.6m to the relatives of six people who died in the Real IRA atrocity.
The judge found four men, Michael McKevitt, Liam Campbell, Seamus Daly and Colm Murphy, responsible for the planning, production, planting and detonation of the 5001b car bomb that ripped through the Co Tyrone town, killing 29 people - including unborn twins - on August 15, 1998.
And in a legal first anywhere in the world, he also ruled that the Real IRA dissident republican terror group was liable.
A case against south Armagh construction labourer Seamus McKenna was dismissed.
Campaigning relatives of Geraldine Breslin (43), Aiden Gallagher (21), Esther Gibson (36), Anne McComb (45), Alan Radford (16) and Lorraine Wilson (15) launched the unprecedented civil action after criminal proceedings failed to bring anyone to account.
To fund the ground-breaking civil action, the bereaved families raised �1.2m and were awarded a special status legal aid grant of almost �800,000 by the British Government. Trial in the case opened last March and concluded in April of this year.
Yesterday saw the plaintiffs granted compensation of between �80,000 and �350,000. But none are likely to see much of that money.
Addressing the packed courtroom, Mr Justice Morgan said there was "compelling evidence" against four of the defendants and described it as "inexplicable" that none had taken the stand.
Michael McKevitt, who is currently serving a sentence for directing terrorism in Portlaoise prison, was described as an RIRA leader with responsibility for procurement.
The judge said: "Michael McKevitt held and has always held a significant leadership role within the Real IRA, which is reflected by the fact that he was certainly its leader in August 1999."
He said there was "cogent evidence" that Liam Campbell had been a member of the RIRA Army Council and held an important leadership position within the terror group. Phone evidence showed he had directed the attack on Omagh.
The court was also told that Colm Murphy had been an "active member" of the Continuity IRA, which carried out the attack along with the RIRA and had lent his mobile phone to the bombers "knowing full well the nature of the attack which was going to be conducted."
Seamus Daly, said to have been an RIRA foot soldier, was linked to the explosion by phone records.
Speaking outside the court, victims' spokesman Michael Gallagher said: "It was better than we could ever have expected. I think we have sent a message to terrorists that from now on you don't only need to worry about the authorities; the families of those victims will come after you. The message to victims around the world is that we have created a
precedent and those other people who have been victims of terrorism can use this vehicle. The message to governments is if you do not do it, we will do it.
"My message to the four men found liable for Omagh is You think you were clever enough to cover up your tracks and get away with it. But you didn't figure on people like us standing up and using all the resources of the law'.
"What we have done is within the law, 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. That's a very strong message we can send around the world.
"This was not about the money. But we will pursue the money. We will punish those people in every way that we can. That's the only way that we can do it. We will make sure, if we can, that terrorism is not a profitable business to be in."
Further Information
Publisher: BELFAST TELEGRAPH
Ref: BT/1146
Published Date: 09-Jun-09
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