Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
ALLEGED ‘TOUTS’ BRUTALLY KILLED BY IRA REVEALED
State names dead to argue the need for spy secrets
The corpse will be found in a ditch, many miles from point of abduction
DRAFT OFFICIAL SUBMISSION ARCHIVES
A LIST of dozens of alleged IRA informers killed by the terror group during the Troubles has been published.
The Government named the dead as part of a draft historical argument for keeping intelligence evidence secret in the face of court proceedings.
The details form part of archives disclosed by the Public Records Office of Northern Ireland.
One 21-year-old victim from Derry had his eyes taped closed and his hands tied behind his back.
Many were dumped near the border with gunshot wounds to the head.
A number did not pass information to the State, officials said.
A draft official submission added: “The Provisional IRA themselves have made it clear on a number [of occasions] that where they believe people within the organisation to be agents or informers they can expect no mercy.
“This usually means torture, followed by a forced confession and murder.
“The corpse will then be found in a ditch, often many miles from the point of abduction.”
A sample list of alleged informers killed by the Provisional IRA from 1978 until before the 1994 ceasefire was published in official files.
In February 1981, Patrick Trainor, 28, from Belfast, was killed at Upton Cottages in the city.
John Mcanulty, 48, from Warrenpoint in Co Down, was abducted in 1989 from a pub in Armagh.
His body was recovered in Crossmaglen.
The remains of Thomas Oliver, 33, from Riverstown in Dundalk, were discovered in July 1991 in a field in Belleeks, Co Armagh.
In the same area on the Mountain Road, John Dignam, 32, was found dead with a gunshot wound to the head on July 1, 1992. He was from Portadown in Co Armagh.
Two other alleged informers from Portadown were found dead on the same day.
The remains of Gregory Burns, 33, were recovered on the Cullaville Road, close to the border. He was shot in the head.
The body of Aidan Starrs, 29, was found on the Dundalk Road in Newtownhamilton.
Robin Hill, 22, from Coalisland in Co Tyrone was found dead in similar circumstances in1992.
In June 1993 the body of Joseph Mulhern, from Belfast, was discovered at Ballymongan in Castlederg in Co Tyrone. He was 23.