Man detained over 1993 murder of RUC officer

The suspect was detained on Tuesday under the Terrorism Act and questioned at the Musgrave serious crime suite in Belfast by the officers from the PSNI’s Legacy Investigation Branch.

Const Ferguson, a 21-year-old Catholic officer from Omagh, was shot in the head at close range while on duty in Shipquay Street on January 23.

He was rushed to Altnagelvin hospital but did not survive his injuries.

There were a number of suspects arrested for questioning in May this year but all were released without charge.

In 2015, 42-year-old Christopher Paul O’Kane of Woodland Avenue in Londonderry confessed to a number of IRA terrorism charges, including the murder of Constable Ferguson, and was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment.

However, he was released after two years under the terms of the Belfast Agreement.

Constable Ferguson’s brother, Joseph, lit a candle in his memory at the National Police Memorial Day service in 2018.

Speaking to the BBC at the time of the service, he said he “honestly could not” forgive the killers – and that he has difficulty with the thought of visiting the murder scene.

“I am aware that flowers that were left there on one occasion were ripped up and that put me off,” he said.