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Chief Constable apologises over museum murder weapon

Relatives for Justice - Kevin Winters, David Kennedy, Danny Doherty, Marie Sykes, Thomas Duffin, Mark Thompson and Billy McManus - before their meeting with the Chief Constable.  Picture by Cliff Donaldson
Relatives for Justice - Kevin Winters, David Kennedy, Danny Doherty, Marie Sykes, Thomas Duffin, Mark Thompson and Billy McManus - before their meeting with the Chief Constable. Picture by Cliff Donaldson Relatives for Justice - Kevin Winters, David Kennedy, Danny Doherty, Marie Sykes, Thomas Duffin, Mark Thompson and Billy McManus - before their meeting with the Chief Constable. Picture by Cliff Donaldson

THE Chief Constable has apologised to the families of the Sean Graham's bookmakers' massacre after the rifle used in the murders was discovered in a London museum.

Five Catholics, including a 15-year-old boy, were murdered when a UDA gang opened fire on the shop on Ormeau Road in February 1992.

A further nine people were injured in the shooting.

The RUC - and subsequently the PSNI and the Historical Enquiries Team - told the victims' families that the rifle used in the attack, which was also linked to other murders, had been destroyed.

But last month the BBC's Panorama programme revealed that the rifle had actually been on display in the Imperial War Museum in London.

The Police Ombudsman is investigating the case.

Chief Constable George Hamilton yesterday met the victims' families to apologise on behalf of the PSNI.

Speaking after the meeting facilitated by victims' group Relatives for Justice, Billy McManus, whose father Willie (54) was killed in the betting shop attack, praised Mr Hamilton's "heartfelt" apology.

"First of all we're glad that he did see us," Mr McManus told the BBC.

"It was a heartfelt apology. He did say in the meeting he is a human being. He did say he knew that it hurt the families the way we found out about it. There was a full commitment that he would back the Police Ombudsman."

He added: "If you've broken the law in any part of collusion, the full force of the law is going to come down on you."

Thomas Duffin, whose 66-year-old father Jack was the oldest victim of the attack, said the families fully accepted Mr Hamilton's apology.

"We just have to move on from here now and look to the full inquiry," he said.

The meeting came ahead of a debate on collusion in the assembly last night.

DUP MLA Edwin Poots told the assembly that some IRA informers could now be in "high authority".

He claimed informants "didn't end at Fred Scappaticci or Denis Donaldson".

"I suspect some of those high level informers could be in places of high authority even as we speak," he added.

Speaking after the debate, Sinn Féin assembly member Chris Hazzard said collusion can no longer be dismissed.

"There is clear and undeniable evidence that not only proves the existence of collusion, but also that it was British government policy; that it was routine, systematic, planned and directed with full political authority that went right to the top," he said.

Mr Hazzard said the government must hold an inquiry into the murder of Belfast solicitor Pat Finucane, open up its files on the Dublin and Monaghan bombings, and fund investigations into cases of collusion.