Hyde Park: Blunder lets IRA bomb suspect go free

Alleged IRA Hyde Park bomber John Downey will not be prosecuted after a 'no trial' guarantee. Picture: Getty

AN IRA man accused of the murder of four British soldiers in the 1982 Hyde Park bombing walked free yesterday when the case against him collapsed due to a “reckless” error by police.

A judge threw out the case against John Downey, a convicted member of the IRA who was the prime suspect for the London bombing, after it emerged that he had received a “letter of assurance” from the police in Northern Ireland in 2007 that he would not face criminal charges, despite the fact there was an outstanding warrant for his arrest.

Although the police in Northern Ireland later realised their mistake, the assurance was never withdrawn – an error the judge said amounted to a “catastrophic failure” that misled the defendant.

Last night, families of the victims of the attack said they felt “devastatingly let down” after the prosecution announced it would not appeal against the decision to throw out the case.

The remains of the car which housed the bomb. Picture: PA

Downey, 62, of County Donegal, was arrested and charged last May at Gatwick airport en route to Greece. He denied the murder of four soldiers and conspiring to cause an explosion.

The judge, Mr Justice Sweeney, threw the case out after Downey’s lawyer successfully argued at the 11th hour that the defendant should not go on trial at the Old Bailey.

Yesterday, the Crown announced that it would not appeal against the decision, allowing details of the case to be published for the first time.

Last night, Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) chief constable Matt Baggott apologised to the families of the Hyde Park victims for the error by his force. He said the PSNI accepted the court’s decision and full responsibilty for the failures which resulted in Downey walking free.

“I deeply regret these failings, which should not have happened,” he said.

He added that the matter will now be referred to the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland and that checks were under way on information dealt with by the force in other similar cases.

In a statement, relatives of the four soldiers said: “It is with great sadness and bitter disappointment that we have received the full and detailed judgment and that a trial will now not take place.

“This news has left us all feeling devastatingly let down, even more so when the monumental blunder behind this judgment lies at the feet of the Police Service of Northern Ireland.”