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Bereaved mother sends heartfelt letter to James Brokenshire over legacy investigations

Brian Service who was shot dead by loyalist paramilitaries in 199
Brian Service who was shot dead by loyalist paramilitaries in 199 Brian Service who was shot dead by loyalist paramilitaries in 199

A MOTHER bereaved in the Troubles has penned a heartfelt open letter to the British government claiming victims are being forgotten amid the delay addressing the legacy of the conflict.

Ann Service's son Brian (35) was shot dead by loyalist paramilitaries in north Belfast in October 1998.

The widow said her family has been able to learn no more about the circumstances of his death since the day he was killed.

Mrs Service, whose husband Davy died four years ago, said she does not have time to wait further years to have the case re-investigated.

In the letter, she urged Secretary of State James Brokenshire to act to ensure stalled mechanisms to deal with the legacy of the Troubles are finally established.

Proposals signed-off in the 2014 Stormont House Agreement - including a new independent investigatory unit, a truth recovery body and an oral archive - are still on ice due to a small number of outstanding political disputes.

Mr Brokenshire is planning a public consultation exercise on the framework in a bid to move on from the impasse.

Mrs Service recounted the night her son, a Catholic construction worker, was shot as he walked home from his brother's house in the Ardoyne.

"When they told me he was dead I just wanted to lie down on the ground where he died alone to be close to him even for a moment," she said.

"I am telling you all this so that you know that Brian was a real person because after his murder that's not the way he was treated.

"It was as if he never really existed as a person and that his life and death did not matter.

"The police hardly seemed to bother with an investigation.

"He was dead and that was it."

Mrs Service said she complained to the Police Ombudsman but did not expect her son's case to be dealt with for at least 20 years due to the current backlog.

"I can't wait that long. I don't have time."

Urging Mr Brokenshire to ensure that her family, and other murder victims' cases would be examined, she said: "Please don't let us be forgotten all over again."