A DISSIDENT republican who was last month convicted of killing two British soldiers at an army barracks in Co Antrim has been sentenced to a minimum of 25 years in jail.
Brian Shivers (46), from Magherafelt, Co Derry, who has cystic fibrosis, was found guilty on January 20th of the murders of Mark Quinsey and Patrick Azimkar. The two soldiers were shot by the Real IRA in an ambush at Massereene barracks in March 2009.
Mr Justice Anthony Hart told Belfast Crown Court yesterday that despite his condition, which means he may only have a few years left to live, Shivers would spend at least 25 years in prison before being considered for release.
Shivers was considered by the prosecution not to have been one of the gunmen, but to have been responsible for trying to burn out their getaway car, which was found at Ranaghan Road, about eight miles from Massereene.
His DNA was found on matchsticks recovered from and around the Vauxhall Cavalier vehicle, which had been abandoned and only partially burned out.
The soldiers’ families were not in court, but Mr Justice Hart referred to statements in which they said their lives had been “devastated” by the murders.
Mr Justice Hart said he accepted Shivers had played a “lesser role” than the gunmen and driver of the getaway car. However, he said Shivers “played a prominent and essential role in this carefully planned and ruthlessly executed crime”.
Shivers’s co-accused, Colin Duffy (44) from Lurgan, was acquitted of the murders.
The PSNI has renewed its appeal for information about the killings, releasing a recording of a phone call made by the killers shortly after the attack. The recording was on a mobile phone left in the getaway car.