Martin McGartland (born 30 January 1970)[1] is a former British informer who infiltrated the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA)[2] in 1989 to pass information to RUC Special Branch. The Northumbria police at this stage however has declined to confirm or deny that the van believed to have been used by the gang that shot McGartland has since been destroyed. But I don't really have a daily life now. His identity became publicly known after a minor court case. The Provisional IRA reportedly assured Scappaticci of their belief in his denials, and has issued public statements suggesting that the announcement of the former as a tout was a stunt by the British government to undermine Sinn Fin and the Republican movement. The first interview took place on 26 August 1993 in the car park of the Culloden Hotel in Cultra, County Down. [10] It is unclear whether this audio is a recording made via the Cook Report investigation. [18], Although McGartland prevented the IRA from carrying out many spectaculars, including the planned bombing of two lorries transporting British soldiers from Stranraer to Larne that could have resulted in the loss of over a dozen lives,[19] his reported greatest regret was his failure in June 1991 to save the life of 21-year-old Private Tony Harrison. This enabled him to better identify suspects who had been targeted by RUC Special Branch. [26] He failed in his attempt to receive compensation for his injuries. Denis Martin Donaldson (Short Strand, Belfast, Northern Ireland, 1950 4 April 2006 in County Donegal, Republic of Ireland) was a volunteer in the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) and a member of Sinn Fin who was murdered following his exposure in December 2005 as an informer in the employ of MI5 and the Special Branch of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (formerly the Royal Ulster Constabulary). [3], In August 1974, OCallagan walked into a bar in Omagh, County Tyrone and fatally shot Detective Inspector Peter Flanagan of the RUC Special Branch. [15] He also worked closely with Belfast actress Rosena Brown, a prominent and highly skilled IRA intelligence officer. Directed by: Kari Skogland. He also became involved in battles with other Catholic youths against Ulster Protestant boys from nearby loyalist estates; this mostly involved throwing stones at each other. You have subscribed to Smashwords Alerts new release notifications for Martin McGartland. The following year, Gilmour gave evidence in a special Diplock Court, jury-less trial against the 35 people he had incriminated. McGartland was recruited by the RUC special branch to infiltrate and undermine the Belfast IRA in the late 1980s. In 1981 he was arrested by French authorities at Orly airport, along with fellow IRA volunteer, William Blue Kelly. "Paranoia is my best friend and my worst enemy. Martin was kidnapped by the IRA in 1991 and escaped by jumping from a third floor window. OCallaghan informed the court that had frequented the pub only because it was the nearest public house. McGartland additionally has a contract which was signed by MI5 after he was shot in England in which the representatives of the PSNI and Northumbria Police acknowledged his service in general terms. If you like, you can change the digest interval below. And Marty believes he will always be a target because his book caused the IRA so much damage. The former FRU agent turned whistleblower using the pseudonym Martin Ingram has said in his 2004 book Stakeknife that Scappaticci eventually developed into an agent handled by British Army Intelligence via the FRU. [13] On December 18, 1984, the presiding judge, Lord Lowry, ruled that Gilmour was not a credible witness. Martin "Marty" McGartland (born 30 January 1970 in Belfast, Northern Ireland) is a former British agent who infiltrated the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) in 1989 to pass information to RUC Special Branch. In 1969, violent attacks were perpetrated against civil rights organizers and many other Catholics by unionists. In 1999 McGartland was shot six times by two gunmen outside his home in Whitley Bay, North Tyneside. He recounted in his book Fifty Dead Men Walking that he occasionally drove IRA punishment squads around and overheard them boast about the beatings they had meted out to their victims. D.I. Marty then fled Northern Ireland and hid out at a safehouse, on Duchess Street in Whitley Bay town centre. Martin was kidnapped by the IRA in 1991 and escaped by jumping from a third floor window. His identity became publicly known after a minor court case. In 2003, Scappaticci was alleged to have volunteered as an informer in 1978 after being assaulted in an argument with a fellow IRA member. Police visited him at home to issue an official notice about fresh information that suggests his life is in danger. Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. His cover was blown in 1991 when he tipped off police about a planned attack on a pub in Bangor, County Down. The Court of Appeal has ruled that the home secretary can use secret court hearings to defend a damages claim being brought by a former IRA informer. [2] After demanding, and receiving, treatment as a political prisoner, OCallaghan quietly served his sentence. He also revealed that he had a heart complaint and was an alcoholic. [6] In 1978, after two years with the INLA as an RUC agent, he left on police instructions. McGartland's first job was working a paper round, and later delivering milk. This was after being recommended by a childhood friend, Harry Fitzsimmons, part of an IRA bomb team, whom McGartland often drove around Belfast. [citation needed] He claimed to have been in regular contact with its leaders, Gerry Adams (now TD for Louth) and Martin McGuinness (now deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland). According to Wikipedia, Forbes, IMDb & Various Online resources, famous Writer Martin McGartland's net worth is $1-5 Million at the age of 49 years old. In June 1999 the IRA shot Martin 6 times outside his safehouse in the North of England. Kevin Fulton is a British agent from Newry, Northern Ireland, who allegedly spied on the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) for MI5. [11], In November, Gilmours father was abducted by the IRA. On the reports main findings, McGartland said: I am now urging the current chief constable of Northumbria police to immediately admit and acknowledge that the IRA had been behind my June 1999 attempted murder. In 1993 Scappaticci approached the ITV programme The Cook Report and agreed to an interview on his activities in the IRA and the alleged role of Martin McGuinness in the organisation. Individuals who have given valuable service to the country and who may be at threat as a result deserve and receive considerable support at public expense to ensure their safety. [12] Gilmour was then sent to Cyprus and then Newcastle by the RUC. [17] He discovered how IRA sympathizers had infiltrated various public institutions and businesses, and many members acquired computer skills, thereby enabling the IRA to gain access to detailed information on a wide range of people in Northern Ireland including politicians, lawyers, judges, members of the security forces, Ulster loyalist paramilitaries, and prison officers. [3], On 5 November 2006, he was released without charge after being arrested in London, and transferred to Belfast to be questioned about his knowledge or involvement in the deaths of Irish Peoples Liberation Organisation member Eoin Morley (aged 23), Royal Ulster Constabulary officer Colleen McMurray (34), and Ranger Cyril Smith (aged 21). Browse Martin McGartland's best-selling audiobooks and newest titles. Martin was shot 6 times by the IRA in June 1999. "I'm not a threat to them. This enabled him to better identify suspects who had been targeted by RUC Special Branch. The 49-year-old, who now lives in a secret location with a new identity, has told for the first time how happy he had been in Whitley Bay, before his cover was blown. Martin was shot 6 times by the IRA in June 1999. [16] McGuinness stated that if de facto exiles such as Gilmour wanted to return home, it was a matter for their own judgment and their ability to make peace with the community. [41][42], After the 1994 ceasefire, McGartland appealed to be allowed to return home to West Belfast. Harrison, a soldier from London, who was shot by the IRA at the home of his East Belfast fiancee where they were making wedding plans. The dwelling had not been modernised and so there was no running water or electricity.[7]. [2] He was also given a beating by British soldiers at age 13 for petty crime and they attempted to recruit him as an informer. The spy, Martin McGartland, of Belfast, Northern Ireland, was recruited by the Special Branch of the Royal Ulster Constabulary in the mid-1980s. When he was exposed as an agent in 1991 he was abducted by the IRA, but escaped and was resettled in England. "At one time I had eight different firearms officers looking after me. The interview was posted on the World Wide Web as the 2003 allegations against Scappaticci surfaced. [8], McGartland has said that because he was sickened by increasing Provisional IRA violence directed at young Catholic petty lawbreakers in the form of punishment beatings (often carried out with iron bars and baseball bats) and knee-cappings, in 1986 at the age of 16 he agreed to provide information to the RUC about local IRA members, thereby preventing them from carrying out many attacks against the security forces. The shipment had been purchased from the Winter Hill Gang, an Irish-American crime family based in South Boston, Massachusetts. Northumbria Police continue to cover-up Martin's attempted murder. Its findings appear to support McGartlands claims over the past two decades that the IRA rather than a local north-eastern criminal gang was behind the murder attempt in Whitley Bay on 17 June 1999. When he was exposed as an informer in 1991, he escaped from IRA custody and was resettled in England. Discover more authors you'll love listening to on Audible. The Crown authorities advised in the same letter that he take up the offer of a new identity. To order a copy (P&P free . His identity became publicly known after a minor court case. The IRA terrorist panicked and fled. McGartland remembers thinking the inevitable had just happened, but also that "I must not die this day." . Martin McGartland is the author of Fifty Dead Men Walking (4.16 avg rating, 1649 ratings, 89 reviews, published 1997), Dead Man Running (3.77 avg rating,. It was initially believed that the Provisional IRA were responsible for his killing although the Real IRA claimed responsibility for his murder almost three years later. A spokesperson for Northumbria police said: We can confirm this case has remained open since the shooting in 1999. Mon 2 Sep 2019 12.08 EDT Last modified on Wed 18 Dec 2019 10. . The couple had two young daughters at the time of the arrest. 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