Praise for ex police officer who consistently defended his former PSNI colleagues against fake claims of anti Catholic sectarianism
Unionist politicians have praised the former police officer who for two-and-a-half months challenged the false claims about sectarian conduct in the PSNI by the anonymous complainant.
After the News Letter on Saturday published a confession by the officer, known as ‘Sean’, that his claims were a fabrication, click here to read the full confession, Jon Burrows – a former head of discipline in the PSNI – reposted on X an image of our front page.
He wrote: “I gave the public my word that the allegations made by Sean were entirely false. I’ve been vilified & called a sectarian bully; but I was defending honourable but very hurt men & women of all faiths & none from monstrous allegations.
"We extend grace to Sean. Get well brother.”
The former first minister of Northern Ireland Baroness Foster replied that it was “only thanks to [Burrows], the TSG members and [this newspaper] that the truth has come out”.
Jim Allister MP said: “Well done Jon Burrows, Your tenacity secured the victory of truth over lies.”
Scroll down to read more. Also click here to read about the chief constable’s silence in response to News Letter questions
The Belfast Telegraph, which reported Sean’s original allegations on its front page in early March, yesterday reported the retraction of his claims. Its article on the latest development to the saga said: “Two and a half months ago, ‘Sean’ did an extended interview with the Belfast Telegraph in which he said he had been one of the PSNI’s first Catholic recruits, but he regretted ever joining the police.
“We verified his identity and put his allegations to the PSNI, which did not dispute them but said that a senior officer would meet him to discuss them. Days later, he said he was taking legal action against the PSNI. However, today he said in a statement that he had ‘misled’ us, that he is ‘deeply sorry’ and that everything he’d claimed about sectarianism was ‘untrue and did not in fact occur’.
“The statement was not sent to the Belfast Telegraph but published in the News Letter. He gave no reason for inventing the allegations. Our attempts to contact Sean failed, with his phone number now not taking calls.
“We are continuing to protect his identity due to the genuine threat from dissident republicans which we have independently verified. However, we can now report that two weeks ago, Sean privately told us he continued to stand over his allegations.”