An Armagh man was yesterday found guilty of a conspiracy to cause an explosion in London's docklands in which two people were killed and 150 others injured. The huge lorry-bomb James McArdle is said to have parked at South Quay, close to Canary Wharf, brought an end to the first IRA ceasefire in 1996.
The jury at Woolwich Crown Court are still considering two further charges of murder against McArdle. He has denied both charges.
The jury of three men and nine women returned its verdict of guilty to the conspiracy charge after deliberating for more than five hours.
The jurors returned to their room to continue deliberating afterwards.
Mr John Bevan QC, prosecuting, said it was "little short of a miracle" that more people had not been killed or injured in the "atrocity", because inadequate and misleading warnings had been given by the IRA.
McArdle (29), who comes from Crossmaglen, denied two charges of murder and conspiracy to cause explosions between October 30th, 1995, and February 10th, 1996.
He admitted driving the lorry, but claimed he was just an "innocent dupe" who had been used by an IRA godfather he referred to only as "The Boss". He refused to identify the man in court, saying that it would put his family at risk.
"I had no idea the lorry contained explosives", he told the jury.
When the bomb exploded, news agent Inam Bashir (34) and his assistant, John Jeffries (31), were blown to pieces. They were hurled through two walls by the bomb, which had been left outside their premises.
The blast left a crater 32 feet across and 10 feet deep. Not a scrap of the lorry remained in the crater and pieces of it were found as far as 300 yards away.
Mr Bevan alleged that McArdle played a "central and crucial role" in the Canary Wharf carnage.