Trio of devices had near-identical beer keg construction says MLA

William Irwin, representing the Newry and Armagh constituency, was speaking after a spate of eight incidents in less than a fortnight, concentrated largely around the Province’s borderlands.

Police have confirmed that they are considering a link between some of the cases.

• 1: The first incident was on Friday, March 12, when police received a report of ‘a bang’ in the Castleblaney Road area of Keady, south Armagh, and took away a keg for examination. Police did not mention this until days later.

• 2: On Saturday, March 13, police were alerted to “some type of device” being left in the Newtownbutler area of south Fermanagh, but nothing was found after two days.

• 3 & 4: Then on Monday, March 15, police said they had received a report of a device left by the waterside in the north of Enniskillen, and of shots being fired at Enniskillen police station. The PSNI were unable to turn up any evidence of gunfire around the station, and found no device.

But then on Wednesday March 17, the PSNI announced that a suspicious object, which turned out to be a “crude” but viable device, had indeed turned up on the shoreline in Enniskillen.

The CIRA reportedly claimed responsibility for the Enniskillen device by calling the Impartial Reporter newspaper, and insisted that “high velocity rounds” really had been fired at the town’s police station.

The CIRA source also said the Newtownbutler alert had been a “diversion”.

• 5: That same day a suspicious object was found in a keg in the area around Clay Lake, near Keady; it was a “crude homemade explosive”.

• 6: On Friday March 19, there was a report of a suspicious device in Culmore Park, a republican district in Omagh. Police said “nothing untoward was found”.

• 7: On Monday, March 22, a suspicious object was found just outside Camlough, south Armagh. DUP MLA William Irwin said it was believed to be a keg bomb.

• 8: The same day there was a security alert near Maghery, on the far south-west shoreline of Lough Neagh.

Late on Wednesday night, the PSNI confirmed that the objects at Maghery and Camlough were both “crude” devices.

Police told the are examining links between these last two events and the activity at Keady.

Mr Irwin said that these incidents – 5, 7, and 8 – all involved “beer keg explosive devices”.

He said: “These devices, which have been described as crude but viable, were placed beside lakes in three different locations within a relatively short period of time and were almost identical in their construction.

“This is a concerning series of events and the intentions of those who are responsible for these devices should cause great concern and be established quickly.”

He added, “I have spoken to Police at length and given the uniqueness of these circumstances with the placements beside lakes and the risks to the public there is obviously concern.

“These are public locations and visited by those enjoying outdoor recreation therefore such a discovery sends worrying signals.”

Justin McNulty, SDLP MLA for Newry and Armagh, where three of the incidents have been centred, said the pattern of incidents remain “a mystery”, adding: “The people of Ireland have spoken loudly, they do not want to see this.

“Whoever is involved in this behaviour, they need to get off the pitch.”

And Rosemary Barton, UUP MLA for Fermanagh and South Tyrone, said: “For many years the people of this County were subject to a terrorist campaign of murder and intimidation, resulting in people being forced to move from their homes.

“Now once again the law-abiding people of this area are being targeted with a number of recent security alerts.

“It would be reprehensible if terrorist activity was to re-emerge, the people of Fermanagh certainly do not want to be once again inhibited by terrorist action.”

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