Landmark Dublin ruling could see IRA man questioned for 1972 murder of UDR soldier

Rathfriland lorry driver James Elliott was abducted by the IRA near the border at Newry in 1972.

The 36-year-old father-of-three was murdered and his body left on a border road near Newtownhamilton. The remains of the part-time UDR Corporal were left in 'a minefield' of six claymore mines with a 500lb bomb left only feet away.

It was not until 2005 that his family discovered that two IRA men were jailed soon after, in the south, for boobytrapping Mr Ellott's body.

Now, after a legal battle lasting five years, they have secured the release of the Dublin court papers relating to the convictions.

Mr Elliott's son, also James, said his family were shocked that for 30 years they had no idea that two men had been jailed in connection with his father's murder.

"We were astonished and we didn't know for 30 years," he said.

"Even the High Court judge in Dublin who heard our case said it was astonishing."

One of the IRA men served nine months in jail for boobytrapping the body and the other 15 to 18 months, he said.

The length of the sentences was "an absolute joke" for what they did, he added.

"But even more surprising was the fact that that they were never even questioned about his murder."

He was only 12 when his father was murdered.

"It just destroyed my life. It is always there in your mind. I grew up without a father or somebody to guide me and help me along. I had to do all that myself."

James says the PSNI Legacy Investigations Branch (LIB) told them it will now contact Garda about the case.

He knows the names of both IRA men and says one of them is still alive.UHRW Advocacy Officer, Jonathan Larner, said: "We have been pushing for LIB to do this for a long time. We have always said that this surviving IRA man was never questioned for murder and yet he was convicted of putting a bomb by the body. That is a reasonable suspicion of involvement in the murder, therefore he should be questioned."

However he said their legal battle is yet another example of what he said was double standards of the Irish Government regarding victims of the Troubles.

"Unlike in Northern Ireland, victims have no rights to access court files that relate to the murder of their loved ones. We had to go to the High Court in Dublin to get an order from the judge to release the files.

"But in Northern Ireland we have a statutory right to such files, which we can get easily as part of a legacy process. It highlights once again that they don't have any legacy processes in the Republic of Ireland.

"The Irish Government will lecture Northern Ireland and the UK on legacy and yet do nothing themselves. In this case families had to take five years to get access - three years to figure out how to do it and two years in the legal process.

The Irish Department of Justice, Irish Department of Foreign Affairs and the PSNI were invited to comment.

MORE NEWS:

Northern Ireland Protocol: NI veterinarians give urgent public health warning

UVF mural on Shankill Road: PSNI silent on reasons for singling out one memorial out of hundreds