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12/11/2009
Murder Charge Over SAS Death
A man from Co Armagh has been charged with the murder of British Army officer Robert Nairac.
The undercover soldier was killed more than 32 years ago, and this week, Kevin Crilly, 59, from Lower Foughill Road, Jonesborough, has been charged with the murder and two counts of kidnapping and false imprisonment.
He was released on bail following the hearing at Newry Magistrates Court.
Captain Nairac, 29, (pictured), originally from Gloucestershire, was abducted by the IRA from Dromintee, Co Armagh, on 14 May 1977. His body was never found.
He told the court Captain Nairac was abducted after a scuffle broke out at the Three Steps bar in Dromintee in south Armagh.
The kidnap and murder of British Army Captain Robert Nairac is one of the most mysterious cases of Northern Ireland's Troubles.
On the night of his disappearance on 14 May 1977, he was working undercover without backup in the republican heartland of south Armagh, attempting to gather intelligence on IRA operations.
The victim was posthumously awarded the George Cross - the citation praises his resistance to his abductors and bravery under "a succession of exceptionally savage assaults".
Three men have previously been convicted of murdering Capt Nairac.
The court heard that the car used to drive Captain Nairac away was either owned or driven by Mr Crilly.
Two weeks later, a strand of hair consistent with a sample taken from Captain Nairac's hairbrush was found in the car.
It's believed he was driven across the border to Ravensdale forest in Co Louth, where two fishermen later found traces of blood.
Mr Crilly was interviewed by police about Captain Nairac's disappearance, but he was later released. He spent 29 years in the United States, and the court was told he only returned to Northern Ireland after the break-up of a long-term relationship.
While the police opposed an application for bail because of the severity of the murder charge, a defence solicitor said that Mr Crilly had been granted bail in May 2008 after being charged with false imprisonment and kidnapping and had consistently met with all bail conditions and he was released on bail.
(BMcC/GK)
The undercover soldier was killed more than 32 years ago, and this week, Kevin Crilly, 59, from Lower Foughill Road, Jonesborough, has been charged with the murder and two counts of kidnapping and false imprisonment.
He was released on bail following the hearing at Newry Magistrates Court.
Captain Nairac, 29, (pictured), originally from Gloucestershire, was abducted by the IRA from Dromintee, Co Armagh, on 14 May 1977. His body was never found.
He told the court Captain Nairac was abducted after a scuffle broke out at the Three Steps bar in Dromintee in south Armagh.
The kidnap and murder of British Army Captain Robert Nairac is one of the most mysterious cases of Northern Ireland's Troubles.
On the night of his disappearance on 14 May 1977, he was working undercover without backup in the republican heartland of south Armagh, attempting to gather intelligence on IRA operations.
The victim was posthumously awarded the George Cross - the citation praises his resistance to his abductors and bravery under "a succession of exceptionally savage assaults".
Three men have previously been convicted of murdering Capt Nairac.
The court heard that the car used to drive Captain Nairac away was either owned or driven by Mr Crilly.
Two weeks later, a strand of hair consistent with a sample taken from Captain Nairac's hairbrush was found in the car.
It's believed he was driven across the border to Ravensdale forest in Co Louth, where two fishermen later found traces of blood.
Mr Crilly was interviewed by police about Captain Nairac's disappearance, but he was later released. He spent 29 years in the United States, and the court was told he only returned to Northern Ireland after the break-up of a long-term relationship.
While the police opposed an application for bail because of the severity of the murder charge, a defence solicitor said that Mr Crilly had been granted bail in May 2008 after being charged with false imprisonment and kidnapping and had consistently met with all bail conditions and he was released on bail.
(BMcC/GK)
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More than three decades after the shocking killing of undercover British Army Officer, Captain Robert Nairac in south Armagh, a man has appeared in court charged in connection with the murder - and been released on bail until a further appearance in July. Kevin Crilly, 57, was charged with kidnapping and falsely imprisoning Captain Nairac.
Link To Nairac Killing Alleged
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