One of three suspected IRA members detained in Colombia last weekend has been charged with falsifying documents and with terrorist activities.
Mr Niall Connolly (36), originally from Glenageary, Co Dublin, appeared before Colombia's general prosecutor yesterday, where he was charged with engaging in "training and military tactics for illegal terrorist activities". If found guilty of the charges he faces a prison sentence of up to 20 years.
The judge hearing the case said traces of explosives were found on the clothes of Mr Connolly and fellow suspects Mr James Monaghan and Mr Mar tin McCauley. The three gave their statements with the help of official translators before an official of the Attorney General's Anti-Terrorist Unit.
Mr Connolly could be held for up to 18 months before a verdict is delivered. The seriousness of the charges also rules out any possibility of securing bail before trial.
Mr Connolly continued to be referred to as David Bracken during yesterday's proceedings. However, his family confirmed his identity last night. In a statement, they said they were "deeply upset". The Department of Foreign Affairs confirmed it had been in consular contact with the three.
Mr Connolly has spent the past 10 years working in Central America. He spent a number of years as a volunteer with APSO (the Agency for Personal Services Overseas). Recently, he was living in Cuba.
Meanwhile, the Garda Commissioner, Mr Pat Byrne, said the three men were known to the Garda and were believed to be IRA members.
A senior security source in Northern Ireland last night said the operation involved an exchange of technical information about explosives with Colombia's FARC rebels. The mission was said to have been directed by a senior IRA figure in Belfast who is also responsible for the organisation's contact with Gen John de Chastelain's decommissioning body.
Mr Monaghan, in his early 50s, is originally from Donegal and was last living in Newry, Co Down. He has appeared at Sinn Fein ardfheiseanna and is believed to have been a member of the party's ardchomhairle.
Mr McCauley (39), when a teenager, was shot and seriously injured by the RUC in an incident in which his companion, Michael Tighe (17) was shot dead at a disused farm outside Lurgan, Co Armagh, in 1982.
He was given a suspended prison sentence for possession of a rifle found in the shed.
Unit in Bogota as part of "technology exchange": page 7