PSNI stresses its commitment to public safety after waiting 10 months to issue ‘wanted person’ appeal for missing suspect

The PSNI’s Mid Ulster Facebook page had put up a post this week appealing for help to find Stasys Martinkus.

The post said that “a bench warrant was issued for him in October 2021 when he failed to appear in court for [allegations of] assault occasioning actual bodily harm”.

A web search, plus a search of the News Letter’s own site and inbox, suggests this is the first time an appeal has been made to find him.

The News Letter asked the PSNI why it is only now seeking help to track him down, after the best part of a year has elapsed, and why the appeal only came via the Facebook page of a regional police section (rather than via its central press office, for instance).

It said: “The image has been released as part of the PSNI’s Operation Relentless, which was launched on July 19.

“Prior to release of images, PSNI have researched the relevant suspects and made attempts to locate them and have visited their last known address.

“The PSNI prioritise outstanding warrants based on the threat, harm and risk posed by the individual concerned and work with partners in the wider justice system in considering how best to address outstanding arrest warrants.

“PSNI is working to improve even further in this area and at all times, the safety of the public is of primary concern.”

In a press release in July marking the start of Operation Relentless, Chief Superintendent Muir Clark said: “The service we provide is victim focused and Operation Relentless is another tool to help us achieve effective and timely resolutions for victim of crime [our emphasis].”

Despite saying that they want the public’s help to track Martinkus down, the PSNI has refused to provide other information about him such as places he is known to frequent, his age, or any distinguishing marks and tattoos.

PAST FORM OF AUTHORITIES ON THIS ISSUE:

It is not the first time the authorities have taken their time in letting the public know that suspected criminals are at large.

On April 28 this year, the News Letter reported that alleged conman Elijah Martin Gavin, then 26, had vanished from HMP Magilligan two weeks earlier.

It turned out the Department of Justice had put his name and picture up on a webpage it operates (titled “Currently Unlawfully at Large”) but did nothing else to alert the public or media to the disappearance.

In other words, the only real way for the public to know he had gone missing was if a reporter happened to look at that webpage during the period of his absence.

Much the same thing happened in 2018 when the News Letter reported that four convicts, including two with murder convictions, had gone missingin the space of a fortnight in Northern Ireland.

Whilst their names and pictures had been uploaded to that same DoJ webpage, the department did nothing else to alert the public to the fact that these convicted killers were on the loose.

What’s more, about six months later, the News Letter discovered that the DoJ had mistakenly removed one of these on-the-run killers from the wanted list.

Thomas Lawrence McCabe, then aged 55, was jailed in 1990 for murder, after killing an 18-year-old relative of his girlfriend in a drunken jealous rage.

It was at least the fourth time that he had absconded.

Even when the News Letter pointed out to the DoJ that he had been wrongly removed from the public register of missing criminals, it took another three days for the department to reinstate him.

• Missing murder convict mistakenly taken off public wanted persons list by Department of Justice

MCLAUGHLIN SCANDAL:

But arguably the most extreme case of heel-dragging over a wanted person was the disappearance of Damien McLaughlin in 2017.

He was arrested in 2012 as a suspect in the murder of prison warder David Black.

While awaiting trial for aiding and abetting murder and other paramilitary offences, due to begin in February 2017, he was allowed out on bail.

Required to report to police five times a week, he last did so on November 18, 2016.

When police searched his west Belfast address on December 23, 2016, they found a bottle of milk, one month out of date, but no McLaughlin.

On January 3, 2017, police finally notified the PPS that he was missing, and three days later a prosecutor revealed what had happened at a hearing in Belfast Crown Court.

McLaughlin, who had previous weapons convictions, was eventually found in Donegal, brought back for trial, and acquitted of all charges.

You can read a full, intense, blow-by-blow account of his disappearance here (the story was broken by this reporter):

• Bail scandal: countdown to terror suspect vanishing

• No further charges for McLaughlin despite bail breach