Revealed: Fresh evidence that could nail IRA honeytrap gang who killed 3 soldiers

Families given new hope 49 years after cowardly shooting of young squaddies

THE families of three young British soldiers murdered in an infamous I RA ‘honey trap’ are demanding a fresh inquiry after uncovering startling new evidence that could help bring the killers to justice.

Brothers John and Joseph McCaig, aged 17 and 18, and their friend Dougald McCaughey, 23, were executed on a remote road in Belfast by an IRA hit squad in 1971 after apparently being lured to their deaths by two attractive women they had met in a bar.

The deaths of the Royal Highland Fusiliers – the first off-duty soldiers to be killed by the IRA – sparked a wave of revulsion and opened a new blood-soaked chapter in The Troubles, yet no one has ever been convicted.

Now, almost half a century later, the families’ legal team has gained access to previously unseen police files which reveal:

The IRA may have planned the soldiers’ murders for days, with up to ten conspirators involved in the plot;

• The name of one of the women said to be involved in the ‘honey trap’, whose brother and father were IRA members, and who could be alive and living in England;

• One of those suspected of involvement in the murders was a former British Paratrooper turned ruthless IRA hitman called Paddy O’Kane.

Only one of the alleged IRA execution team, Anthony ‘ Dutch’ Doherty, has ever been arrested over the killings, but he escaped from prison in 1971. It was thought that Doherty had died, but The Mail on Sunday last week tracked him down to a terraced house in North Dublin.

He angrily refused to answer questions about the murders.

The families are raising money to fund their legal campaign and their battle for justice has been given fresh impetus by the extradition of Hyde Park bombing suspect John Downey for the alleged murder of two Army volunteers in 1972.

Downey, whose prosecution for the alleged murder of four soldiers in Hyde Park collapsed in 2004 when it emerged he had received a so-called ‘on-the-run’ letter, was extradited from the Irish Republic to Northern Ireland last October.

The soldiers’ relatives hope a new inquest will produce sufficient evidence to trigger a fresh police inquiry and the eventual extradition of suspects to the UK to face trial. David McCaughey, Dougald’s 52-year-old cousin, said: ‘ This new information finally gives us hope that we will one day have the full truth and see justice for Dougald, John and Joseph.

‘We must have an inquest so we can finally have the complete account of what happened and bring the killers who are still alive to the courts. It’s been nearly 50 years and it’s time we had justice.’

The three soldiers had been given the afternoon off and were drinking in Belfast’s bars when they were lured to their deaths on March 10, 1971.

They were befriended by a group of Provisional IRA terrorists and two women during a pub crawl which lasted five hours.

The young soldiers were lured away to a remote country road where IRA gunmen were lying in wait. They were killed with gunshots to the back of the head.

The murders triggered huge protests across Northern Ireland and caused revulsion across both Catholic and Protestant communities in Belfast.

Despite a manhunt led by Scotland Yard, no one has been brought to justice, but the new evidence has prompted the victims’ families to write to Northern Ireland’s Attorney General John Larkin to request a new inquest.

It comes as 200 former members of the British security services are still being investigated for alleged criminal action during The Troubles, with at least four prosecutions under way for murder or attempted murder.

Matthew Jury, of McCue & Partners, lawyers for the families, said: ‘There are a number of unanswered questions and suspects who were not previously spoken to by the police.

‘Those who are still alive must be brought to justice and all avenues must be pursued. The families will not rest until these people answer for their crimes. That’s why we are calling for a fresh inquest and government backing.’

• To donate to the campaign fund, go to crowdjustice.com/ case/3soldiers.

‘We won’t rest until they answer for their crimes’