Now ex-soldier in his 70s is charged over 1972 Troubles killing
A BRITISH Army veteran will be charged with murder over the death of a boy during the Troubles 47 years ago, it emerged yesterday.
The former soldier, who is in his 70s and suffering from ill health, is accused of shooting dead 15-year- old Daniel Hegarty and wounding his cousin Christopher, 17, in Londonderry in 1972.
The decision by Northern Ireland’s Public Prosecution Service (PPS) comes just a month since it announced another veteran, known as Soldier F, will face murder charges over his role in Bloody Sunday.
Yesterday’s announcement concerns a man known as Soldier B, who allegedly shot the two teenagers in the head during an Army move to clear ‘no-go’ areas, known as Operation Motorman.
It reverses three previous decisions not to prosecute Soldier B, made in 1973, 2008 and 2016.
Last year the Hegarty family won the right to seek the prosecution of the soldier again after the High Court quashed the PPS’s 2016 decision not to bring criminal charges, ruling that it was based on ‘irredeemably flawed’ reasoning.
A Government spokesman yesterday said Soldier B will be offered ‘full legal support’. However, the decision to prosecute another soldier over Troubles violence sparked fury among ex-servicemen.
One former paratrooper in his 70s who served with Soldier B spoke of the ‘ shock, anger and disquiet’ of colleagues after learning of the charges.
‘It seems that this witchhunt against those who served their country goes on,’ he said. ‘What makes the blood boil is that there is nothing even-handed about this or the Bloody Sunday charges because those from the other side (IRA) who killed soldiers and civilians are not being pursued with the same determination.’
Another former soldier who served in Northern Ireland during the Troubles said: ‘I think it is disgraceful. The Government has disowned us. Every squaddie feels the same. We have been forgotten.’
In a statement, the Hegarty family said: ‘Daniel was a 15-year- old child, full of life, shot twice in the head at close range and left for dead by Soldier B.
‘We wish Soldier B no ill will. We have not and do not seek revenge or retribution. We just want the criminal trial to begin.’