Bail terms relaxed for alleged IRA bomber John Downey

A man wanted for the murder of two Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) soldiers in Enniskillen in 1972 has had his bail conditions varied by the High Court.

Northern Irish authorities are seeking the surrender of John Downey (66) to face prosecution for the murder of two British army infantrymen as well as aiding and abetting the causing of an explosion on August 25th, 1972.

Lance Corporal Alfred Johnston and Private James Eames were killed when a device exploded in a vehicle they were checking on the Irvinestown Road, Cherrymount, in Enniskillen.

Mr Downey was arrested in November at his home address in Ards, Creeslough, Co Donegal on foot of a European Arrest Warrant. He told detectives he believed "it was the DUP and not the DPP" who decided to prosecute him.

A hearing into Mr Downey’s proposed extradition is due to take place in the High Court early next year.

Mr Downey’s lawyers applied for relaxed bail conditions on Friday.

His barrister, Tony McGillicuddy BL, said his client had to travel two hours every day to sign on at Letterkenny Garda station and was spending a lot of money on petrol.

High Court judge Ms Justice Aileen Donnelly said bail conditions were not supposed to be “punitive”. Having heard Mr Downey has to travel one hour to the Garda station every day, and one hour back, she reduced his signing on conditions to three days a week, rather than every day. The remaining conditions of bail remain the same.

Mr McGillicuddy separately asked the court to make a recommendation for legal aid. He said Mr Downey had outlined his bank account details and it would be appropriate to make the recommendation, “having regard to his means”.

Ms Justice Donnelly commented that Mr Downey’s pension appeared to be “reasonably modest”. She indicated that a recommendation would be made at the end of the case.

Mr Downey stood trial in London for the 1982 Hyde Park bombing in which four soldiers and seven horses were killed. The trial collapsed in February 2014 over a letter sent to him and other alleged republican paramilitaries.

The letters, issued by the Tony Blair Labour government, told the republicans they were not wanted for prosecution of crimes committed during the troubles.

The “on-the-run” scheme and letters, which only fully emerged following the collapse of Mr Downey’s 2014 Hyde Park trial, triggered a major political controversy and lead to an inquiry.

Mr Downey is the first so-called “on-the-run” republican to be charged with offences since the scheme was found by a House of Commons committee to have “distorted the process of justice”.

The full extradition hearing is scheduled for January 28.