Northern Ireland

RMT union calls for 'Craigavon Two' review

Brendan McConville was jailed for 25 years
Brendan McConville was jailed for 25 years Brendan McConville was jailed for 25 years

ONE of Britain’s largest unions has passed a motion calling for the case of two Co Armagh men convicted of killing PSNI Stephen Carroll to be reviewed.

The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) passed the motion earlier this month.

Brendan McConville and John Paul Wootton have denied involvement in the Continuity IRA sniper attack that claimed the life of Mr Carroll as he answered an emergency call in Lurgan, Co Armagh in March 2009.

McConville is currently serving a 25-year sentence while Wootton was handed an 18-year term.

The Court of Appeal in Belfast rejected an appeal in 2014 and the case is currently being considered by the Criminal Case Review Commission.

The RMT currently represents 83,000 members across Britain.

Its motion, which has now been adopted as national policy, "acknowledge concerns about how the convictions of Brendan McConville and John Paul Wootton were achieved and call on the Criminal Cases Review Commission to fully investigate the case”.

Senior assistant general secretary Steve Hedley said members are concerned about the "miscarriage of justice which has happened for nearly a decade now".

“We have looked at the evidence as a union and we think at the very least there should be a review of what happened," he said.

“It’s no good waiting for 20 odd years and having a review after that and setting people free when their lives are destroyed.”