Adrian Ismay murder: Christopher Robinson found guilty

Christopher Robinson shrugged as Mr Justice McAlinden said he was “compelled to conclude” he was “intimately and inextricably involved” in the terrorist operation that led to Mr Ismay’s death.

After being handed a life sentence, the Judge told Robinson he will determine the minimum length of time he will have to serve before being considered eligible for release at a later date.

As the family and friends of Mr Ismay sat in the public gallery, Robinson was then led from the court in handcuffs by prison staff.

During the non-jury trial, it emerged that the two men knew each other as they worked together as volunteers for St John’s Ambulance.

The 52-year old prison officer had just left his east Belfast home and was driving along Hillsborough Drive at around 7am on March 4, 2016 when a device planted under his van detonated after he went over a speed ramp.

Despite appearing to make a good recovery from shraphnel injuries, the father of three died 11 days after the bomb exploded.

Robinson, from Aspen Walk in Twinbrook, was arrested two days after the explosion and denied any involvement in the incident.

During the course of 16 interviews, he refused to answer questions, but in a pre-prepared statement he denied being a member of a proscribed organisation.

He was subsequently charged with murder, possessing explosives and providing property - namely a red Citroen CS - for the purposes of terrorism.

It was the Crown’s case that car in question, which was registered to Robinson’s sister-in-law, was the vehicle used to transport the improvised explosive device to east Belfast.

The prosecution made the case that evening before the explosion, Robinson picked up the Citroen from his brother’s west Belfast workplace, and that this vehicle was used to transport the bomb left under Mr Ismay’s van.

The Crown’s claims were denied by Robinson, with his defence team making the case that the only evidence against him is circumstantial.

Arthur Harvey QC said the Crown had failed to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt, and had failed to provide any evidence to establish a connect between the Citroen and Robinson “on the evening of the 3rd of March 2016 or the morning of the 4th of March, 2016.”

However, in a detailed ruling that took over four hours to be delivered, Mr Justice McAlinden said he had examined the “individual strands of evidence” and concluded Robinson was guilty of the murder charge, and of possessing explosives with intent to endanger life.

The Judge “made no finding” on the charge of providing property for terrorism.