WHY HAVE POLICE NEVER ASKED ME ABOUT OMAGH?
Why have Police never asked me about Omagh?
Ulsterman 'Kevin Fulton' was a soldier who became a British spy inside the IRA. Three years ago his cover was blown. Now he is in hiding, under death threat from Republicans and pursuing a very public legal battle with the Government for a new secret identity. But it was his revelation that he had warned that a bomb was coming into Northern Ireland, two days before the Omagh atrocity, which first brought Fulton to prominence. As part of a series of articles about his life as a spy, today Fulton talks about Omagh and his clash with former Chief Constable Sir Ronnie Flanagan, while reporter Stephen Dempster reveals allegations of an MI5 cover-up to protect the suspected Real IRA bombmaker.
KEVIN Fulton was the spy who warned that the Real IRA was preparing a bomb, two days before the Omagh atrocity - but he has never been spoken to by the team investigating the bombing.
Five years on from the horror which claimed 29 lives, killed unborn twins and injured 250 people, the man who told his handler "something big is going down" and a bombmaker was making a device, does not know why detectives have not interviewed him.
"The Omagh investigation has never asked me for a statement," said Fulton, despite the fact that around 7,000 lines of inquiry are said to have been pursued.
"They are talking at the minute about maybe wanting to speak to me but they are not really following it up vigorously. It's taken them five years to get this far.
"They have only written to my solicitor a few months back and said they believe I may be able to help them," he said in disbelief.
According to Fulton (and stated in the Police Ombudsman's Report on Omagh), he had warned his handler on three separate occasions, earlier in 1998, that he had met Man A (as the Omagh report called the alleged bombmaker) and that he was making devices.
Fulton added, after each time, a bomb followed in Northern Ireland.
In Parliament, on January 2002, Jeffrey Donaldson named Joseph Patrick "Mooch" Blair as the bombmaker.
He said: "In the Police Ombudsman's report there is mention of police informer Kevin Fulton who asserted he met a senior republican in Dundalk a few days before the Omagh bombing.
"He further asserted he smelt explosive (materials) on that person.
"I can tell the house, I am informed by security sources that that individual is Joseph Patrick Blair, the bombmaker."
Fulton - who does not claim his information on its own would have stopped the Omagh bombing-believes intelligence gatherers should have spotted the pattern of the information he provided about Man A and at least put surveillance on him before Omagh.
Days before Omagh, Fulton claims he met Man A and knew he was mixing bomb materials.
The British spy had worked as an informer inside the IRA for many years, during which time he stated Blair was his "mentor".
Over the years, Fulton remained in contact.
"I smelt the traces because I had mixed bombs with the guy for eight years," he recalled.
"I knew I could smell the diesel. They use diesel to wash the cogs of the grinders used to mix the bomb materials. It's the only thing that gets the fertiliser to come off. And anybody who works around diesel knows it smells for a long time."
Fulton knew a bomb would be heading north in 24 to 36 hours but did not know the bomb was heading for Omagh.
He believes, however, that more could have been done with his information - especially now that it is known other warnings were circulating.
He said: "People say you waited an awful long time to come out but I had been talking to my handler for months and months after Omagh. I kept saying 'What's happening over that?' and he had been told 'We are investigating', so I took it at face value that the police were investigating the warning and the information on Mooch.
"Eventually, it turned out they were not investigating it -it had been brushed aside.
"My handler was under the impression it was being looked at but it wasn't. I was asking questions all along.
"I was convinced that Mooch Blair was eventually going to be arrested but not a word of it, it's like he's not even a suspect."
Ulsterman 'Kevin Fulton' was a soldier who became a British spy inside the IRA. Three years ago his cover was blown. Now he is in hiding, under death threat from Republicans and pursuing a very public legal battle with the Government for a new secret identity. But it was his revelation that he had warned that a bomb was coming into Northern Ireland, two days before the Omagh atrocity, which first brought Fulton to prominence. As part of a series of articles about his life as a spy, today Fulton talks about Omagh and his clash with former Chief Constable Sir Ronnie Flanagan, while reporter Stephen Dempster reveals allegations of an MI5 cover-up to protect the suspected Real IRA bombmaker.
KEVIN Fulton was the spy who warned that the Real IRA was preparing a bomb, two days before the Omagh atrocity - but he has never been spoken to by the team investigating the bombing.
Five years on from the horror which claimed 29 lives, killed unborn twins and injured 250 people, the man who told his handler "something big is going down" and a bombmaker was making a device, does not know why detectives have not interviewed him.
"The Omagh investigation has never asked me for a statement," said Fulton, despite the fact that around 7,000 lines of inquiry are said to have been pursued.
"They are talking at the minute about maybe wanting to speak to me but they are not really following it up vigorously. It's taken them five years to get this far.
"They have only written to my solicitor a few months back and said they believe I may be able to help them," he said in disbelief.
According to Fulton (and stated in the Police Ombudsman's Report on Omagh), he had warned his handler on three separate occasions, earlier in 1998, that he had met Man A (as the Omagh report called the alleged bombmaker) and that he was making devices.
Fulton added, after each time, a bomb followed in Northern Ireland.
In Parliament, on January 2002, Jeffrey Donaldson named Joseph Patrick "Mooch" Blair as the bombmaker.
He said: "In the Police Ombudsman's report there is mention of police informer Kevin Fulton who asserted he met a senior republican in Dundalk a few days before the Omagh bombing.
"He further asserted he smelt explosive (materials) on that person.
"I can tell the house, I am informed by security sources that that individual is Joseph Patrick Blair, the bombmaker."
Fulton - who does not claim his information on its own would have stopped the Omagh bombing-believes intelligence gatherers should have spotted the pattern of the information he provided about Man A and at least put surveillance on him before Omagh.
Days before Omagh, Fulton claims he met Man A and knew he was mixing bomb materials.
The British spy had worked as an informer inside the IRA for many years, during which time he stated Blair was his "mentor".
Over the years, Fulton remained in contact.
"I smelt the traces because I had mixed bombs with the guy for eight years," he recalled.
"I knew I could smell the diesel. They use diesel to wash the cogs of the grinders used to mix the bomb materials. It's the only thing that gets the fertiliser to come off. And anybody who works around diesel knows it smells for a long time."
Fulton knew a bomb would be heading north in 24 to 36 hours but did not know the bomb was heading for Omagh.
He believes, however, that more could have been done with his information - especially now that it is known other warnings were circulating.
He said: "People say you waited an awful long time to come out but I had been talking to my handler for months and months after Omagh. I kept saying 'What's happening over that?' and he had been told 'We are investigating', so I took it at face value that the police were investigating the warning and the information on Mooch.
"Eventually, it turned out they were not investigating it -it had been brushed aside.
"My handler was under the impression it was being looked at but it wasn't. I was asking questions all along.
"I was convinced that Mooch Blair was eventually going to be arrested but not a word of it, it's like he's not even a suspect."
Further Information
Publisher: NEWS LETTER
Ref: NL/489
Published Date: 05-Sep-03
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