A former British agent who infiltrated the Provisional IRA told the Smithwick Tribunal today his early duties included putting names to pictures of people who had been photographed from army watchtowers.
Kevin Fulton, whose disclosures alleging collusion between members of the Garda and the IRA were a significant factor in the establishment of the tribunal, also recounted his part in security services’ attempts to target IRA checkpoints.
Mr Fulton, who is also known as Peter Keeley, told Judge Peter Smithwick he had been supplied with a Triumph Dolomite car in order to drive around the south Armagh area where the IRA was known to stage checkpoints.
On arrival at an IRA checkpoint, he was to flick a switch in the car which would alert the security services to the fact that he had encountered the IRA. Once he had encountered the IRA checkpoint, the security services would then scramble “and do their thing”.
Mr Fulton said he could move with relative impunity as he was a Catholic from Newry and had been given papers to say he had been “kicked out of the army” for being unsuitable.
The tribunal is inquiring into claims of Garda collusion in the IRA murders of two RUC officers in south Armagh on March 20th, 1989.
Chief Supt Harry Breen and Supt Bob Buchanan were ambushed and shot dead minutes after leaving a meeting in Dundalk Garda station. They were the most senior RUC men killed in the Troubles.
Mr Fulton said he had joined the British army after a stint in the merchant navy and had been approached by British intelligence services who would take him away from his unit for special training.
He said he was assigned a “babysitter” who accompanied him on a tour of duty in Berlin. When he returned to Northern Ireland, he was required to report weekly to his intelligence officers in Co Armagh.
In relation to the photographs, he said the British army had an observation post overlooking the unemployment office in Newry. Two officers would bring him photographs of those queuing for unemployment assistance, to where he was undergoing army training in Ballymena, and he would identify them.
He said he began to socialise with republicans around Newry and was later formally introduced to the IRA.
