Lawyers appeal in case of alleged loyalist facing 212 charges

A alleged former Ulster Volunteer Force commander facing 212 charges "can't make head nor tail" of a huge body of redacted prosecution papers, a Belfast court has heard.

Gary Haggarty’s lawyers claimed proceedings which began five and a half years ago could be hit by further delays unless unedited papers are disclosed to them. They want full access to transcripts from his interviews to detectives investigating a campaign of killings, murder plots and other paramilitary crime. Mr Haggarty’s evidence is key to a murder case against two Belfast men accused of killing two Catholics.

As legal moves to establish if the 43-year-old will stand trial continue, his barrister challenged a policy based on not detailing any suspected criminality of other loyalists or police Special Branch officers.

Fiona Doherty QC told Belfast Magistrates’ Court: “We have constantly raised concerns over the way this case has been dealt with and the material disclosed to us is redacted to the extent we can’t make head nor tail of it.”

Although Mr Haggarty's address was given as c/o the Police Service of Northern Ireland, he is believed to be living at a secret location in England. He did not appear for the brief court hearing.

About 10,000 pages of evidence have been amassed in the case against him - much of it believed to be based on his own police interviews.

Back in January 2010 he agreed to become an assisting offender under the terms of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act (SOCPA).

A list of the charges against him reveals the scale of the prosecution.

They include:

* Five murders, 31 conspiracy to murder and six attempted murders.

* Four kidnappings, six false imprisonments and five hijackings.

* Twelve possessing explosives with intent to endanger life and 47 counts of having a firearm with intent.

* Eighteen charges of wounding with intent to do grievous bodily harm.

* Three counts of arson, conspiracy to defraud and concealing the proceeds of criminal conduct.

* Two charges each of directing terrorism and belonging to a proscribed organisation.

* Seven counts of possessing money or property for the purposes of terrorism.

The alleged offences span a 16-year period between 1991 and 2007. Preliminary enquiry proceedings to establish if Mr Haggarty will stand trial have been repeatedly put on hold as his legal team battles to gain full access to the interview material.

At one stage he also failed in a High Court bid to force the PSNI to hand over the tapes.

During that case he was said to have disclosed his own criminal conduct and made allegations about police wrongdoing. Ms Doherty told District Judge Fiona Bagnall on Monday that one solution involves using ciphers for names in the transcripts.

Those could then be cross-referenced to help establish details. But the barrister claimed the process has so far only been completed on two out of 15 Lever Arch files in the case.

“I could be standing here this time next year saying the same thing,” she said.

A Public Prosecution Service lawyer stressed, however, that it was just as anxious to secure progress.

Listing the case for a further review, Judge Bagnall suggested that a senior prosecutor should attend. She acknowledged the proceedings were “unique and complicated”, but added: “The bottom line is this case has got to get on in a meaningful timeframe.”

Meanwhile, a lawyer for two Belfast men charged with murdering two Catholic workmen questioned why their proposed trials must wait until Mr Haggarty is dealt with.

James Smyth (48), and Mark Campbell (43), are jointly accused the double killing of Gary Convie and Eamon Fox in May 1994. The victims were gunned down as they sat eating lunch in a car at a building site on Belfast’s North Queen Street.

Mr Smyth, from Forthriver Link, and Mr Campbell, of Canning Place, are further charged with attempting to murder a third man, Donal Laverty, in the same attack. They were charged by detectives investigating a campaign of UVF-linked murder and serious crime.

At previous hearings defence lawyers claimed the allegations are based on evidence from Mr Haggarty.

In court on Monday, John Greer, solicitor for Mr Smyth and Mr Campbell, continued his opposition to their cases being put on hold.

Mr Greer argued: “There’s no statutory reason in the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act that says an assisting offender has to be dealt with before a trial.”