Sinn Féin has asked British Prime Minister Mr Tony Blair to stop the arrests and raids by detectives investigating the break-in at Castlereagh police station. Three people arrested in connection with the incident were released on Thursday without charge. They included former IRA hunger-striker Mr Raymond McCartney. Another former prisoner, Mr Bobby Storey, was among six people arrested last week and later released.
One of those arrested was charged with an offence unconnected to the break-in. Sinn Féin chairman Mr Mitchel McLaughlin yesterday said there was no evidence linking the Provisionals to the theft of the highly sensitive intelligence files from the Special Branch office at Castlereagh last month.
"The security services have to put up or shut up. We have called on Tony Blair to rein these people in. People are very, very angry and tensions are high because of the brutality of the arrests," he said.