MEMBERS of the British Army were questioned about the murder of a north Belfast man previously blamed on loyalists.
Father-of-two Patrick Quail was shot dead as he walked along Clifton Street in north Belfast in January 1976.
At the time it was reported that he was the sectarian attack carried out by loyalists.
However, it has now emerged that the RUC interviewed five serving and former British soldiers about the murder in 1981 but never informed the dead man’s family.
Mr Quail’s family only became aware of the significant development after being told by Historical Enquiries Team (HET) officials several years ago.
The details were confirmed in draft HET report provided to the family last year.
The arrests came after the Scotsman newspaper received an anonymous call claiming that members of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlander Regiment, which were based at nearby Brown Square, had carried out the killing.
RUC officers travelled to Germany at the time to question other soldiers.
The anonymous caller also identified one of the five soldiers as the killer.
The man, known as suspect One, denied any involvement but was subsequently charged with burglary offences and sentenced to three years in prison.
Two other soldiers also admitted their part in burglaries carried out in Belfast while they were based there.
Another one of those quizzed, Suspect Four, told police that he had heard a rumour that Suspect One had a .455 revolver, the same type as that used to kill Mr Quail, and a bomb and that he wanted revenge for injuries received while serving in the north.
He claimed that when he later asked Suspect One if he was involved in the murder he said ‘mind your own business’.
The HET report confirms that the RUC received a report from Lothian and Borders Police in Scotland in 1985 naming Suspect One as the killer.
It is believed this was never followed up by the RUC and it is understood that records of where the original information came from no longer exist.
On the back of the revelations Relatives for Justice, which has supported the Quail family, recently wrote to Attorney General John Larkin asking for new inquest.
A 1977 inquest returned an open verdict.
Both Mr Quail’s sons Martin, who was 15 and Patrick, who was 11, at the time of the attack, said there should be a new probe.
Mr Quail’s son Patrick last night said he believes the PSNI’s Legacy Investigations Branch should also look into the case.
“It’s in black and white, it’s there,” he said. “They should have arrested them a long time ago.”
His brother Martin believes the former soldiers have questions to answer.
“Because of what they represented they should be pursued even more than your average person, because of their allegiance to the Queen and crown.
“They were sent to protect people and try and resolve the conflict in Northern Ireland.”
Mike Ritchie from Relatives for Justice, who has researched the case, said it needed to be re-examined.
“If there’s a proper inquest into this then the coroner would be able to order a new inquest,” he said.
“There are unexplained elements that need to be investigated.”
