Gavin Coyle's sentence is an 'occupational hazard for violent extremism', says former prison governor

Gavin Coyle helped fellow paramilitaries try to kill the off-duty policeman in 2008 by providing a car used in the attack (which was claimed by the Real IRA).

The victim was left bloodied and wounded but alive after a bomb detonated under his vehicle in the Tyrone border village of Spamount.

A bystander pulled him from the burning car – an act which a witness at the time said “probably saved the officer's life”.

Coyle had been charged with attempted murder and causing an explosion over the 2008 bombing, but was acquitted of those counts.

However, he admitted providing property for the purpose of terrorism and belonging to an outlawed terror group (the IRA) between May 1, 2007 and May 13, 2008.

He received four years in jail, plus two on licence for the offence on Friday at Belfast Crown Court.

Writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, Mr Burrows posted: “Contrast this sentence with the 18 years an Old Bailey judge gave dissident republican Ciaran Maxwell in 2017 for possession of pipe bombs. We’ve a major cultural problem.”

Former prison governor, Ian Acheson, also posted his dismay on the social media platform: “Four years in connection w/the attempted murder of a PSNI officer by a terrorist. Four. That's not justice, it's an occupational hazard for violent extremism. Totally unbelievable. Nowhere else in the UK is the life of a police officer held so cheaply.”