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Council told loyalist paramilitaries behind theft of almost 3,000 pallets from unsecured site

The Gransha Road facility where the bonfire material had been stored by Belfast City Council ahead of the Twelth bonfires before disappearing. Picture by Mal McCann
The Gransha Road facility where the bonfire material had been stored by Belfast City Council ahead of the Twelth bonfires before disappearing. Picture by Mal McCann The Gransha Road facility where the bonfire material had been stored by Belfast City Council ahead of the Twelth bonfires before disappearing. Picture by Mal McCann

THIS is the isolated property where up to 3,000 pallets being held by Belfast City Council were stolen.

The site at Gransha Road, deep in the Castlereagh Hills outside Belfast, was used to store pallets set to be stacked at two city bonfire sites.

In previous years the council has used shipping containers to protect the wood, but a lack of security at the council-owned isolated former farmyard allowed thieves to enter and remove the pallets – around half of which are owned by global supply-chain firm Chep.

The theft, which is believed to have occurred on Wednesday evening before being reported on Thursday, means the council will not be able to return the distinctive blue pallets to Chep.

Yesterday’s meeting of the council’s Strategic Policy and Resources committee heard claims that the UDA was behind the theft – which would have required significant manpower and at least one large vehicle to carry out.

In an ironic twist, Sinn Féin’s council leader Jim McVeigh said that should any of the pallets reappear on bonfire sites, the PSNI would be forced to intervene as they are now classed as “stolen property”.

Mr McVeigh said: “They have, up to now, enjoyed a bit of cover in terms of burning pallets. If loyalist paramilitaries stole them in the fear they would not get them back after all, then they must now realise they are handling stolen goods, which is what the council were effectively doing in the first place in terms of the blue Chep pallets.

“If they appear again on bonfires, it will be up to the PSNI to take action.”

Police have previously refused to remove burning material from bonfire sites, citing a lack of legislation to do so – despite having removed pallets from nationalist bonfires, often held in August.

A PSNI spokesman said they were investigating the theft, adding: “It is unclear at this time when the pallets were taken and enquiries are ongoing.”

Mr McVeigh said he believed the UDA was involved in the theft.

“Questions now need to be asked as to why this incident was not foreseen, and why the site was not secured.

“Hopefully this will form part of the overall investigation into this fiasco.”

Meanwhile, a spokeswoman for Belfast City Council insisted the local authority would continue to “work with communities and a range of statutory agencies” to reduce the “negative impact of bonfires on local residents”.

The council has declined to comment on the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of the pallets "as it is now the subject of a police investigation.”