Northern Ireland

James Corry: IRA bomber 'released from German jail after four days'

James Corry (48) was convicted last month for his part in an IRA bomb attack on a British army base in Germany
James Corry (48) was convicted last month for his part in an IRA bomb attack on a British army base in Germany James Corry (48) was convicted last month for his part in an IRA bomb attack on a British army base in Germany

A BELFAST man convicted of attempted murder over an IRA attack on a British army base in Germany has been released after just four days, according to reports.

James Anthony Oliver Corry (48), originally from the New Lodge area of north Belfast, admitted to helping stage a mortar attack in Osnabruck in 1996 - but said killing soldiers was not its main aim.

Last month he was sentenced to four years in jail, with one suspended due to a procedural delay.

However, according to a report in the Sunday Life, he was released from a German jail after four days.

The newspaper reported that he was welcomed home at a party in Ireland.

DUP MP Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said he would be investigating the circumstances of Corry’s alleged release this week.

"If he has been released after four days it would obviously be a concern," he said.

Corry was convicted of being part of an "active service" IRA unit that fired three mortar shells on to the grounds of the Quebec Barracks in western Germany on June 28 1996.

Two failed to go off and the third exploded near a petrol station in the army base.

Although dozens of army personnel were on the site, no-one was injured.

At the time Osnabruck was the British army's largest base outside Britain.

Corry, who has lived with his wife Christine in the village of Killorglin, Co Kerry for 20 years, was arrested in October 2015.