A SENIOR officer in An Garda Síochána allegedly permitted stolen cars to cross the border, the ongoing Omagh Bombing Inquiry has heard.
It was alleged that vehicles were allowed into the North to gather intelligence on dissident republican activity.
The allegation was outlined by Martin Bridger, a former investigator with the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland (PONI), who said he had interviewed a Garda whistleblower about the practice.
Mr Bridger told the inquiry that the officer had an informant providing information on violent dissident republicans involved in stealing vehicles for terrorist purposes.
He said the Garda officer raised concerns about growing activity in January 1998, reporting that “the boys are
back in town” to a senior colleague.
BOMBS
According to Mr Bridger, an operational response followed, resulting in vehicles carrying bombs being intercepted before they could reach their intended destinations.
He said his initial reaction was that the operation had been successful in preventing explosives from being transported into Northern Ireland or mainland Britain.
However, Mr Bridger alleged that on at least two occasions in the months leading up to the Omagh bombing, the senior
officer allowed cars to cross the border in an effort to develop the intelligence being gathered.
Mr Bridger has a background in anti-corruption policing in London.
In 2012, he was commissioned by some of the Omagh victims’ families to produce a report into the bombing.
He also questioned whether the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) and An Garda Síochána had worked as closely together as has been suggested in investigating the attack.
“I have to say everything I visited, everyone I have spoken to, every document I have looked at I am still of
the view that I’m not sure that is the case,” he told the hearing.
Twenty-nine people, including a woman pregnant with twins, were killed when the bomb exploded in Omagh on 15 August 1998, making it the deadliest single atrocity of the Troubles.