Loughinisland film-maker names NI journalists arrested over document theft

In a tweet on Friday morning, Alex Gibney, who directed ‘No Stone Unturned,’ reported that his producer Trevor Birney and journalist Barry McCaffrey had been detained by police.

Early in the day, the PSNI reported the arrest of two men, aged 51 and 48, in Belfast in relation to the theft of documents from the office of the Police Ombudsman NI.

In his Twitter message, Gibney said: “Alert: @trevorbirney my producer on “No Stone Unturned,” and journalist @Barry_TheDetail have just been arrested in Belfast, NI, for doing good, hard-hitting journalism. Outrageous. Raise ruckus. I am travelling. More later.”

He later tweeted: “In ‘No Stone Unturned,’ the film exposed the failure of police to properly investigate Loughinisland Massacre and bring suspected killers to account. Police reaction? Re-open murder investigation? No. Arrest the truth tellers.”

The film drew considerable controversy upon its release in November last year for naming one of the suspected gunmen in the UVF murder of six men at The Heights bar in 1994.

Officials from the ombudsman office reported the theft of the documents to the PSNI, who in turn asked Durham Constabulary to conduct an independent investigation.

Detectives from Durham Constabulary, supported by officers from the PSNI, executed search warrants at three properties in the Belfast area on Friday.