A man accused of murdering senior Sinn Féin official and MI5 spy Denis Donaldson is to face two trials from next October. The other trial relates to an attempted murder.
Prosecuting barrister Michael Bowman told the three-judge, non-jury Special Criminal Court on Monday that Antoin Duffy (50) will face two separate trials.
The first, for the alleged attempted murder of Liam McGinley, will begin on October 5th, 2027.
The second trial, for Donaldson’s alleged murder, will begin when the first trial ends.
READ MORE
Duffy had been in prison in Scotland following a 2015 conviction for his part in a plot to murder members of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA).
Gardaí from the Donegal division arrested him in March following his extradition from Scotland.
Defending barrister Brendan Grehan told the court there was going to be “very significant disclosure” in the case involving agencies in Scotland, witnesses in State protection and evidence gleaned through the use of “intrusive surveillance methodology”.
Grehan said the defence had seen only the fruits of the Garda investigation but “not what is behind the wall”. The case will be mentioned again in January to update the court on the disclosure process and any issues that may arise.
McGinley’s attempted murder is alleged to have happened at Meenaboll, Churchill, Co Donegal, on November 19th, 2007.
Duffy, last of Braade, Kincasslagh, Co Donegal, is also charged with the murder of Donaldson and possession of a shotgun and ammunition with intent to endanger life at Cloghercor, Doochary, Co Donegal, between April 3rd and April 4th, 2006.
Donaldson was a former member of the Provisional IRA and a high-ranking Sinn Féin official. He associated with senior members of the party, including former party president Gerry Adams.
In 2002, when Donaldson was Sinn Féin’s top administrator working in the Northern Ireland Assembly in Stormont, he was charged with involvement in an alleged spy ring. Three years later, the charges were dropped and within days, the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) informed Donaldson he was about to be exposed in the media as an MI5 informer.
Donaldson met with senior republicans and admitted he had been working for the British intelligence unit, MI5, and the Special Branch unit of the RUC for more than 20 years. On December 16th, 2005, Donaldson held a press conference in Dublin in which he publicly acknowledged his role as a double agent.
He removed himself from public life and went to live at an isolated cottage near Glenties in southwest Donegal, where, at the age of 55, he was shot dead on April 4th, 2006.
Dissident republican group the Real IRA later claimed responsibility for the murder.
