28 May 1998 Edition
Back issue: Murder gangs
Direct links between members of the British army and loyalist murder gangs have been exposed again. One Royal Scots Regiment and three Ulster Defence Regiment soldiers have appeared in court in Belfast in the last week, charged in connection with loyalist terror.
On Tuesday, Joanne Garvin, a UDR soldier, and Cameron Hastie, a soldier from the Royal Scots, were charged with passing photographs and information about ``suspect republicans'' to loyalists. This incident - soldiers using their positions within the crown forces to get information and photographs from British intelligence files, which are then passed on to loyalist murder squads - is by no means unique. It does however reinforce the point which has been consistently made by Sinn Fein spokespersons - that there is widespread and regular collusion between the crown forces and loyalist killers.
Garvin, who admitted giving the information to the UVF, was released by Belfast High Court on £1,100 bail - in stark contrast to people from the nationalist community who are held in custody on comparatively trivial charges or whose bail is set at an unattainable level.
On Tuesday, Joanne Garvin, a UDR soldier, and Cameron Hastie, a soldier from the Royal Scots, were charged with passing photographs and information about ``suspect republicans'' to loyalists. This incident - soldiers using their positions within the crown forces to get information and photographs from British intelligence files, which are then passed on to loyalist murder squads - is by no means unique. It does however reinforce the point which has been consistently made by Sinn Fein spokespersons - that there is widespread and regular collusion between the crown forces and loyalist killers.
Garvin, who admitted giving the information to the UVF, was released by Belfast High Court on £1,100 bail - in stark contrast to people from the nationalist community who are held in custody on comparatively trivial charges or whose bail is set at an unattainable level.