Revealed: the terrorists whose inquests you are paying for - sometimes twice

The News Letter has revealed that dozens of paramilitaries form part of the long backlog of deaths which are waiting to be probed in the coroners' courts.
William Fleming. IRA man shot deaad in Londonderry by the SAS in grounds of Gransha Hospital with collegue Danny Doherty.William Fleming. IRA man shot deaad in Londonderry by the SAS in grounds of Gransha Hospital with collegue Danny Doherty.
William Fleming. IRA man shot deaad in Londonderry by the SAS in grounds of Gransha Hospital with collegue Danny Doherty.

They make up 35 of the 94 names now outstanding on the list of Troubles inquests, and here the News Letter names each one of them, says what their allegiances were, and how they died.

What is more, 15 of these names have been added to the list in recent years by the attorney general, having previously been subject to earlier inquests (a handful of names of people who appear to have some lesser paramilitary involvement are also on the list below).

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READ MORE ABOUT THE BREAKDOWN OF THE 94 NAMES, AND HOW IT IS GROWING, HERE.

Danny Doherty. IRA man shot dead by the SAS with William Fleming in grounds of Gransha Hospital.Danny Doherty. IRA man shot dead by the SAS with William Fleming in grounds of Gransha Hospital.
Danny Doherty. IRA man shot dead by the SAS with William Fleming in grounds of Gransha Hospital.

Meanwhile, the families of many civilians are still awaiting inquests which have never once been heard, many years after the deaths occurred.

The details on this list have been obtained from Troubles encyclopaedia Lost Lives, cross-referenced against the QUB and Ulster University-supported database known as CAIN (Conflict Archive on the Internet) and news reports.

James (aka Seamus) Bradley, aged 19. IRA man. Killed on July 31, 1972 during Operation Motorman in Londonderry. The book ‘Lost Lives’ does not explicitly attribute death to the Army, but the Conflict Archive on the Internet (CAIN, supported by both Ulster University and Queen’s) does. Previous inquest heard. new one ordered July 2013.

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Hugh Gerard Coney, 24. IRA man shot by Army during attempted escape from Long Kesh, November 6, 1974. Soldiers said repeated warnings were given. There had been a subsequent inquest, but a new one was ordered in May 2016.

Scene of the shooting ot two INLA men (Seamus Grew and Roddy Carroll) after they were said to have broken through a road block.Scene of the shooting ot two INLA men (Seamus Grew and Roddy Carroll) after they were said to have broken through a road block.
Scene of the shooting ot two INLA men (Seamus Grew and Roddy Carroll) after they were said to have broken through a road block.

James Gervaise McKerr, Eugene Toman, John Frederick Burns – 31, 21, and 21. IRA men shot by RUC on November 11, 1982 near Lurgan, when police claimed their car crashed through a roadblock. Previous inquest abandoned in 1994.

Roderick Carroll and Peter James Martin ‘Seamus’ Grew, 21 and 30. INLA men, shot by RUC on December 12, 1982, at a checkpoint near Armagh city. Less than a week earlier the INLA had killed 17 people in the Ballykelly bombing. The two dead men had been seen with INLA leader Dominic McGlinchey in the Republic earlier in the day.

Daniel Doherty and William Fleming – 23 and 19. IRA men killed by the SAS in an ambush on December 6, 1984. They were armed and in hospital grounds. It is thought they were waiting to kill a hospital worker was in the UDR.

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The deaths were subject to previous inquest proceedings. Fresh inquests ordered in 2010 and 2012, respectively.

Former republican prisoner Sam MarshallFormer republican prisoner Sam Marshall
Former republican prisoner Sam Marshall

Declan Arthurs (21), Seamus Donnelly (19), Michael A Gormley (25), Eugene Kelly (32), Patrick Kelly (32), James Lynagh (32), Padraig McKearney (32), Gerard O’Callaghan (29). All IRA men killed in an SAS ambush whilst heavily armed and attacking Loughgall police station, May 8, 1987.

Previous inquest had been heard. New one ordered in September 2015.

Gerard Laurence Casey, 29. IRA man shot by the UDA at his home in Rasharkin, April 4, 1989. Subject of previous inquest. New one ordered in July 2010.

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Samuel James Marshall, 31. Although he is listed as ‘civilian’ in Lost Lives, it notes that he had been in Sinn Fein, served a jail term for burning Orange Order property, was on bail on ammunition charges at the time of his shooting in Lurgan, and was in the company of violent republican Colin Duffy when he was shot on March 7, 1990. CAIN lists him as ex-IRA and says the UVF killed him.

Danny Doherty. IRA man shot dead by the SAS with William Fleming in grounds of Gransha Hospital.Danny Doherty. IRA man shot dead by the SAS with William Fleming in grounds of Gransha Hospital.
Danny Doherty. IRA man shot dead by the SAS with William Fleming in grounds of Gransha Hospital.

Alexander Martin Patterson, 31, INLA man, shot in SAS ambush on November 12, 1990, during a gun attack on a UDR man’s home. An INLA statement afterwards said: “From us there will be heard no cry of foul or complaints of non-adherence to yellow-card rules of engagement.” It said the INLA expected “no quarter” from the British, “and none should be sought from us in return”.

Michael James ‘Peter’ Ryan, Anthony Patrick Doris, Laurence McNally – 37, 21, and 38. IRA men killed by the SAS on June 3, 1991 in Coagh, while in a hijacked car with weapons. One of the rifles found in the car had been used to kill three men.

Patrick Daniel Vincent, Sean O’Farrell, Peter Paul Clancy, Kevin Barry O’Donnell – 20, 23, 19, and 21. IRA men killed on February 16, 1992, in an SAS ambush near Coalisland after opening fire on a police station with a heavy machine gun mounted on a hijacked lorry.

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Raymond McCord Jnr, 22. Though listed as a civilian by both ‘Lost Lives’ and CAIN, a Police Ombudsman investigation uncovered intelligence that he was importing drugs for a top UVF man. It has also been widely reported that he had joined the organisation. He was killed by the UVF in Newtownabbey on November 9, 1997.

Richard Jameson, 46. UVF man killed in a loyalist feud near Portadown on January 10, 2000.

Robert Mahood and John ‘Jackie’ Coulter, both 48. Killed in north Belfast as part of a loyalist feud on August 21, 2000. CAIN lists Mahood as a UVF member. Though ‘Lost Lives’ lists him as civilian, it notes he “was reported to have UVF connections”, that paramilitary flags were displayed outside The Sportsman pub he ran during his funeral, and that his funeral was attended by LVF and UDA figures. He was together with UDA man Coulter at the time of his shooting.

Scene of the shooting ot two INLA men (Seamus Grew and Roddy Carroll) after they were said to have broken through a road block.Scene of the shooting ot two INLA men (Seamus Grew and Roddy Carroll) after they were said to have broken through a road block.
Scene of the shooting ot two INLA men (Seamus Grew and Roddy Carroll) after they were said to have broken through a road block.

Kevin McAlorum, 31. Though ‘Lost Lives’ and CAIN both list him as civilian, the former says he was “once a prominent member of the INLA”, and was alleged to be involved in drugs. He was shot in south Belfast, reportedly as part of an INLA dispute, on June 3, 2004.

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Gareth Paul O’Connor, 24. Listed as civilian by ‘Lost Lives’, it says he was charged with RIRA membership at the time of his disappearance. CAIN simply lists him as RIRA. He vanished in May 2003 and his date of death is listed by coroner as June 11, 2005 – when his body was found in his car in Newry canal. He is believed to have been killed by fellow republicans.

Kieran Doherty, 31. ‘Lost Lives’ has no record of him. A member of the RIRA, he was killed by his former comrades outside Londonderry on February 24, 2010. Bizarrely, the Courts Service is not treating his death as a legacy case, but The News Letter has inserted him into this list.

Bobby Moffett, 43. ‘Lost Lives’ has no record of him, and CAIN lists him as “ex-UVF?”. He was killed in an internal loyalist dispute in west Belfast on May 28, 2010. An Independent Monitoring Commission report states the convicted robber was “associated with both the UVF and the Red Hand Commando”.

Contentious cases – where there is room for doubt about true paramilitary involvement, and whether that involvement led to their deaths:

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David McCafferty, 14. Listed by ‘Lost Lives’ as in the OIRA, and by CAIN as in its “youth section”, ‘Lost Lives’ says he was killed while unarmed (probably by soldiers) during heavy gunfire in west Belfast, on July 9, 1972. A previous inquest was heard, and a new one ordered in December 2014.

John Dougal, 16. He was a member of the Fianna, the IRA’s youth wing. Lost Lives said he was believed to have been shot by the Army amid a gunfight in west Belfast on July 9, 1972. ‘Lost Lives’ recounts that tests to detect if he had fired a weapon were negative. A previous inquest had been heard. A new one was ordered in December 2014.

Patrick Joseph Crawford, 15. Listed as OIRA in ‘Lost Lives’ (which quotes the police as saying he was a ‘political activist’, not a rioter), and as civilian by CAIN. Found shot in hospital grounds in west Belfast, August 10, 1975. His mother had previously been killed by the IRA during a gun battle with the Army, and his uncle was murdered by loyalists. It is not clear who shot him, but possibly the PIRA, says ‘Lost Lives’. A previous inquest was held, and a new one ordered in September 2015.

Francis Patrick Bradley, 20. Shot by the SAS, February 18, 1986 near Toomebridge. Though listed by both ‘Lost Lives’ and CAIN as civilian, he was believed to have been moving or storing guns for the IRA at the time of his death. A previous inquest had been heard, and a new one was ordered in May 2010.

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Gerard Martin Slane, 27. Shot in his home by the UDA in west Belfast on September 23, 1988. Listed as a civilian by both ‘Lost Lives’ and CAIN, he had a conviction for a firearms offence in the 1970s. A previous inquest had been held, but a new one was ordered in May 2011.

Seamus Patrick Dillon, 45. Killed in Dungannon by the LVF on December 28, 1997. Listed as civilian in ‘Lost Lives’, he was an ex-IRA killer but was said to have broken links with the group. He was shot apparently at random.

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