ARRESTED
Arrested
By ROSA PRINCE
Seven quizzed by Omagh bomb detectives after dawn border raids
SEVEN men were being questioned last night in connection with the Omagh bomb following dawn swoops on both sides of the border.
In a joint operation between the RUC and Gardai five men were detained in raids in Dundalk and two in south Armagh.
Police north and south arrested six of the men in a co-ordinated swoop on several addresses at around 7am.
Officers in the south later arrested a seventh man, in Co Louth, in a follow-up operation. Both Dundalk and south Armagh are thought to be strongholds of the Real IRA, who admitted responsibility for the August 15 bomb atrocity in which 29 people died.
In the south, the arrested men, including a suspected key member of the Real IRA, were held under the terms of the Offences Against the State Act.
It allows suspects to be kept in custody for up to 48 hours.
Among them are a father and son, as well as a man from Northern Ireland.
Three of the detained suspects are being held in Monaghan, now the base for Garda investigations into the Omagh bombing", and two in nearby Carrickmacross, where the car used in the attack was stolen.
The bomb itself is thought to have been primed in the north.
Two of the arrested men are in their 30s, one in his 50s and another in his 60s.
The age of the fifth man to be arrested was not released.
Gardai have been working" closely with the RUC since the start of the investigation.
Last night, an RUC spokesman said: "A number of arrests were made today in connection with the on-going investigation into the bombing in Omagh."
There was no official confirmation of the number of arrests.
The UUP's security spokesman Michael McGimpsey welcomed the joint operation.
"Obviously, we're waiting for the outcome of these arrests but I hope it is a sign that progress is being made by the Omagh bomb investigators." he said.
Last month, Garda Commissioner Pat Byrne said there would be "no let-up" in the hunt for the Omagh bombers and claimed he was confident of achieving success.
By ROSA PRINCE
Seven quizzed by Omagh bomb detectives after dawn border raids
SEVEN men were being questioned last night in connection with the Omagh bomb following dawn swoops on both sides of the border.
In a joint operation between the RUC and Gardai five men were detained in raids in Dundalk and two in south Armagh.
Police north and south arrested six of the men in a co-ordinated swoop on several addresses at around 7am.
Officers in the south later arrested a seventh man, in Co Louth, in a follow-up operation. Both Dundalk and south Armagh are thought to be strongholds of the Real IRA, who admitted responsibility for the August 15 bomb atrocity in which 29 people died.
In the south, the arrested men, including a suspected key member of the Real IRA, were held under the terms of the Offences Against the State Act.
It allows suspects to be kept in custody for up to 48 hours.
Among them are a father and son, as well as a man from Northern Ireland.
Three of the detained suspects are being held in Monaghan, now the base for Garda investigations into the Omagh bombing", and two in nearby Carrickmacross, where the car used in the attack was stolen.
The bomb itself is thought to have been primed in the north.
Two of the arrested men are in their 30s, one in his 50s and another in his 60s.
The age of the fifth man to be arrested was not released.
Gardai have been working" closely with the RUC since the start of the investigation.
Last night, an RUC spokesman said: "A number of arrests were made today in connection with the on-going investigation into the bombing in Omagh."
There was no official confirmation of the number of arrests.
The UUP's security spokesman Michael McGimpsey welcomed the joint operation.
"Obviously, we're waiting for the outcome of these arrests but I hope it is a sign that progress is being made by the Omagh bomb investigators." he said.
Last month, Garda Commissioner Pat Byrne said there would be "no let-up" in the hunt for the Omagh bombers and claimed he was confident of achieving success.
Further Information
Publisher: THE MIRROR
Ref: TM/084
Published Date: 22-Feb-99
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