The following is the Police Ombudsman of Northern Ireland Ms Marie Anderson’s (pictured above) report into the murder of Sinn Fein councillor Eddie Fullerton.
The Murder of Eddie Fullerton – The RUC Investigation
10.1. At the time of his murder, Mr Fullerton was a Sinn Féin councillor who held seats on both Buncrana Urban Council and Donegal County Council. He lived in Buncrana, County Donegal, with his wife Diana. Their six children were grown up and had all moved out of the family home. On the evening of 24 May 1991, Mr Fullerton attended a council meeting in Letterkenny. He arrived home at approximately 1:00am the following morning and, after watching some television, went upstairs to bed at approximately 2:00am.
10.2. At approximately 2:15am, a number of armed men broke down Mr Fullerton’s front door with a sledgehammer and made their way upstairs. They shot Mr Fullerton six times on the first floor landing. An Garda Síochána (AGS) were contacted and attended. Mr Fullerton was pronounced dead at the scene.
10.3. At approximately 11:50pm, four armed and masked men with Northern Irish accents had forced their way into a house in the isolated area of Shandrum, outside Buncrana. They held a family hostage for approximately two hours before stealing their Mitsubishi Lancer car and a sledgehammer. Both the car and sledgehammer were subsequently used during the murder of Mr Fullerton.
10.4. Following the attack, the gunmen made their escape over the border into Northern Ireland. The Mitsubishi Lancer car used in the attack was found on fire shortly after 4:05am at Coney Road on Culmore Point, on the Northern Ireland side of the border.
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10.5. The UDA/UFF later claimed responsibility for the murder, stating that it was in retaliation for the PIRA murder of Ian Sproule on 13 April 1991 near Castlederg, County Tyrone. They alleged that Mr Fullerton assisted in targeting Mr Sproule by providing PIRA with a ‘leaked’ AGS document containing personal information about him.
The Murder of Ian Sproule
10.6. This document allegedly contained Mr Sproule’s personal details and linked him to a number of incendiary device attacks in County Donegal during 1987. A subsequent AGS investigation found no evidence to support the claim that Mr Fullerton provided PIRA with any documentation. The Fullerton family have always maintained that Mr Fullerton played no role in the murder of Mr Sproule.
10.7. At the time, a regional newspaper reported that PIRA handed a journalist an AGS document which they claimed justified their decision to murder Mr Sproule. A later newspaper article, quoting unnamed AGS sources, stated that the ‘leak’ came from an individual who attended a meeting of Donegal County Council in Lifford, two days before Mr Sproule’s murder. PIRA later stated that they recovered the document from a loyalist intelligence ‘dump’ in Castlederg. However, as Mr Fullerton was the sole Sinn Féin representative at the Lifford meeting, his family believe that this newspaper article led to him being targeted in revenge for Mr Sproule’s murder.
10.8. AGS were responsible for the investigation of Mr Fullerton’s murder but, as it was believed that those responsible came from Northern Ireland, the RUC assisted in a number of lines of enquiry. My investigators considered allegations made by the Fullerton family about RUC conduct both prior to, and following, the murder.
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Assistance from An Garda Síochána
10.9. Following a formal request by my Office, my investigators met with AGS officers who provided them with information and documentation relating to the investigation of Mr Fullerton’s murder. I would like to thank them for their assistance in this matter.
Initial Police Response
10.10. Buncrana AGS were notified of Mr Fullerton’s murder at 2:30am on 25 May 1991, the first officers attending the scene at 2:34am. AGS initially contacted Strand Road RUC Station at 2:50am, then again at 3.18am, once they became aware of the house takeover and that those responsible spoke with Northern Irish accents.
10.11. At 4:07am, Stand Road RUC Station received a report from the Northern Ireland Fire Brigade that a car was on fire at the Coney Road sewage treatment works on Culmore Point. Police attended and the car was forensically examined and photographed prior to being taken to NIFSL for further examination. Although the vehicle registration plates had been destroyed, the chassis number confirmed that it was the Mitsubishi Lancer car linked to the murder of Mr Fullerton.
10.12. My investigators examined all the available RUC documentation, including the C6 Station Register35 at Strand Road RUC Station. This register detailed police actions in response to the burning car at Coney Road. The register records that CID and the relevant Duty Inspector were notified.
10.13. My investigators interviewed a number of former RUC officers who were on duty at the time of the murder. These included
35 A C6 Register is an occurrence book
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Communications Room staff and officers on patrol duties. Although their accounts provided useful information regarding policing structures and processes at the time, none of them recalled being tasked to assist with the murder investigation.
10.14. My investigators also interviewed a number of former RUC officers who attended the Coney Road scene, but they could provide nothing of significant value. However one former officer, who was Station Duty Officer at Shantallow RUC Station on the night in question, recalled being notified of the murder by Communications Room staff at Strand Road RUC Station.
10.15. He stated that there was a direct phone line between Strand Road RUC Station and Donegal AGS. He stated that he updated the relevant C6 Station Register and informed CID and the relevant Duty Inspector. My investigators interviewed the relevant CID officer. However, he offered limited information. He confirmed that the incident was passed to Shantallow CID the following morning for further enquiries.
RUC Investigation Team
10.16. Although AGS led the murder investigation, they sought considerable assistance from the RUC, given that they believed loyalist paramilitaries from Northern Ireland were responsible. A Detective Inspector, Police Officer 3, was responsible for supervising all RUC enquiries requested by AGS. These were managed from a Major Incident Room (MIR) based at Strand Road RUC Station which utilised a paper-based enquiry management system, the Major Incident Room Standardised Administrative Procedures (MIRIAM). Once completed, all investigative actions and related evidence were forwarded to AGS. My investigators reviewed these enquiries and established that they were generally completed in a timely manner.
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10.17. My investigators interviewed Police Officer 3, who stated that his deputy at the time was a Detective Sergeant. They reviewed all incoming AGS requests, before raising investigative actions that were then allocated to detectives based at Strand Road RUC Station. Their team was also supported by detectives from the Regional Intelligence Office. Police Officer 3 informed my investigators that they did not use the computerised Home Office Large Major Enquiry System (HOLMES) because they were assisting AGS, who had primacy for the investigation.
10.18. Police Officer 3 confirmed that there were established procedures in place for information sharing between the RUC and AGS. Any requests relating to Mr Fullerton’s murder were made either verbally or in writing between the RUC Border Liaison Officer (BLO), a Superintendent, and his AGS counterpart. Strand Road RUC Communications Room also forwarded messages received from AGS. He stated that an official AGS-RUC liaison desk was not established until 1996.
RUC Enquiries
10.19. My investigators reviewed the relevant RUC Action Sheets which were generated by AGS requests. These detailed enquiries conducted by the RUC and identified a number of police officers who worked on the investigation. My investigators interviewed a number of these former police officers but they could provide no information that progressed this investigation.
10.20. The Action Sheets examined by my investigators indicated that the following enquiries were conducted by RUC officers:
• A military vessel was utilised to search part of the Lough Foyle shoreline. Nothing of note was found;
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• House-to-house and witness enquiries were carried out in the Culmore Point area, including interviews of security staff at Coolkeeragh Power Station;
• Enquiries were conducted regarding a helicopter sighting in the Culmore Point area around the time of the murder;
• The Mitsubishi Lancer car was forensically examined. No evidence was recovered as it had been burnt out;
• Enquiries were conducted regarding a number of vehicles observed acting suspiciously both prior to, and following, the murder in the Derry/Londonderry and Buncrana areas;
• Witnesses who observed the Mitsubishi Lancer car burning on Coney Road were interviewed;
• Details were obtained of all vehicles that passed through relevant Permanent Vehicle Check Points (PVCPs) between 9:00am on Friday 24 May 1991 and 9:00am on Saturday 25 May 1991;
• A list of suspected loyalist paramilitaries from the Derry/Londonderry area, and vehicles linked to them, was generated;
• Continuity statements were obtained from police witnesses regarding the examination of the Mitsubishi Lancer car, and the recovery of a latex glove at the Coney Road scene. It was submitted for forensic examination but nothing of an evidential value was recovered; and
• Photographs of the Coney Road scene and copies of related forensic reports were obtained.
10.21. The helicopter sighted at Culmore Point was initially reported by a member of the public at 2:40am on 25 May 1991. My investigators reviewed police documentation indicating that a military helicopter had been scheduled to fly between Ballykelly Camp and Ebrington Camp at the relevant time. The RUC requested information from the military on 6 June 1991, as to whether the crew or pilot had observed anything
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suspicious in the area. My investigators were unable to locate a response from the military to the RUC request.
10.22. I am of the view, given the available evidence, that the RUC completed the majority of these enquiries in a thorough and timely manner. An outstanding investigative action related to an AGS request to interview security personnel who were at the Culmore Road PVCP between 2:00am and 6:00am on 25 May 1991. My investigators found no record of this enquiry being completed. My investigators interviewed the Detective Constable who was allocated the relevant investigative action. He could not recall the outcome of the enquiry.
Ballistics
10.23. The RUC assisted with relevant ballistic examinations. It was established that a 9mm Browning pistol and a .38 Smith and Wesson revolver were used in the murder of Mr Fullerton.
10.24. The Smith and Wesson revolver would later be used in the murder of Thomas Donaghy, the attempted murder of James McCorriston, and the Castlerock murders. It was originally a PPW that was stolen from the Garvagh home of a RUC Reserve Constable in February 1988.
10.25. On 8 April 1993, police carried out a search at Downhill near Castlerock, County Derry/Londonderry, where they recovered the Smith and Wesson revolver, together with two other weapons. A discharged cartridge case from the Smith and Wesson was recovered by police at Ballygudden Road, Eglinton, on 3 November 1993. This was during a police search that formed part of the Greysteel murder investigation.
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10.26. The 9mm Browning pistol was later used in the murder of Daniel Cassidy. Although this weapon has never been recovered, an examination of spent cartridge cases recovered from the Fullerton and Cassidy scenes established that they had been discharged from the same weapon.
10.27. RUC Special Branch possessed intelligence indicating that the North West UDA/UFF were in possession of Browning 9mm Hi-Power semi- automatic handguns. Two of them were recovered from Persons L and M, following their arrests, on 25 February 1989. I am of the view, given their serial numbers that they originated from the 1987 loyalist arms importation.
RUC – AGS Communications
10.28. My investigators interviewed a number of former RUC officers involved in the relevant investigation. They stated that there were good informal relations between the RUC and AGS at the time. Although the BLO relationship focused on more strategic matters and the sharing of sensitive information, day-to-day liaison between the two police forces was usually through telephone calls or border meetings.
10.29. However, these informal methods of contact were rarely documented, meaning that it was difficult for my investigators to establish the level of liaison, and nature of information shared, during the murder investigation. Senior RUC and AGS officers attended monthly regional meetings and quarterly Headquarters meetings. My investigators were unable to find any minutes for these meetings covering the relevant period. However, my investigators examined AGS documentation which indicated that senior AGS and RUC officers discussed the progress of the investigation. Information was shared, including that relating to suspects. One AGS report indicated some procedural issues relating to the sharing of intelligence. However, the
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documentation evidenced an overall good working relationship between the RUC and AGS.
10.30. An Garda Síochána also provided this investigation with details of an internal report, dated January 1994. It referred to a meeting between senior police officers from the RUC and AGS where details of Persons I, J, K, and P were discussed, as having been responsible for Mr Fullerton’s murder. The report stated that the RUC had interviewed all four individuals about the murder and other serious crimes, but there was insufficient evidence to charge them.
10.31. My investigators contacted the relevant RUC Border Liaison Officer but he chose not to assist the enquiry. Efforts to locate his relevant police journals, minutes of meetings he attended with AGS officers, and other relevant documentation were unsuccessful. AGS contacted the Border Liaison Officer for County Donegal on behalf of this Office. He informed them that he could not remember the events with any certainty and therefore was unable to assist this investigation.
Arrests
10.32. In 2009 the PSNI, at the request of the AGS, arrested Persons I, J, K, and P on suspicion of Mr Fullerton’s murder. AGS had also requested that four other individuals be arrested. Person W, who was not one of the 8 individuals AGS had requested to be arrested, was arrested by the PSNI at the time also. The duration of the interview periods of the 5 individuals ranged from 27 minutes to 70 minutes. They all denied being involved and were subsequently released without charge. To date, no individual has been prosecuted for the murder of Mr Fullerton.
10.33. In December 2021, a man was arrested in Muff, County Donegal in connection to the murder of Mr Fullerton. He was questioned by the AGS, and was subsequently released without charge.
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Complaint by the Fullerton Family
10.34. The family of Mr Fullerton raised a number of questions and concerns regarding the actions of RUC officers both prior to, and following, the murder. These were as follows:
I. That the RUC unlawfully arrested Mr Fullerton on 13 January 1990 while he was engaged in a peaceful border protest;
II. That following the arrest of Mr Fullerton, members of the RUC passed his personal details to loyalist paramilitaries who used the information to assist in targeting him;
III. That the RUC failed to question individuals convicted of criminal offences linked to the weapons used in the murder of Mr Fullerton. They obstructed the AGS investigation by failing to disclose these links and interview suspects because of Mr Fullerton’s political beliefs;
IV. That the RUC failed to assist the AGS investigation by not sharing with them all relevant intelligence;
V. That the RUC failed to record a statement from a witness who lived near the location where the Mitsubishi Lancer car was set on fire following the murder. This witness is alleged to have observed three men get into an unmarked RUC car, indicating that police facilitated the escape of the murderers;
VI. That Mr Fullerton’s murder was part of a campaign by the security forces, including members of the RUC, to assassinate high profile Irish republicans;
VII. That RUC officers allowed those responsible for Mr Fullerton’s murder safe passage across the border; and
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VIII. That the Fullerton family were concerned about the role played in the murder by police informants and an organisation known as ‘The Committee.’36
That the RUC unlawfully arrested Mr Fullerton on 13 January 1990 while he was engaged in a peaceful border protest.
That following the arrest of Mr Fullerton, members of the RUC passed his personal details to loyalist paramilitaries who used the information to assist in targeting him.
10.35. Mr Fullerton was one of 11 individuals arrested at Fanny Wylies Bridge, Lenamore Road, on 13 January 1990. The bridge is situated on the Derry/Londonderry-Donegal border and, at that time, had been blocked with concrete blocks by the military as part of an ongoing security operation.
10.36. Following his arrest, Mr Fullerton was taken to Strand Road RUC Station where he was photographed and interviewed. He was subsequently charged with the offence of Interference with a Border Crossing contrary to Section 19(a) of the Northern Ireland (Emergency Provisions) Act 1978. The matter was heard at Londonderry Magistrates Court in September 1990, when the charges were withdrawn against all 11 individuals. My investigators have been unable to establish the reason why the charges were withdrawn.
10.37. Mr Fullerton’s family alleged that the arrest was unlawful. They alleged that the RUC obtained his personal details during the detention process, which were then passed to loyalist paramilitaries.
36 ‘The Committee: Political Assassination in Northern Ireland’, Sean McPhilemy, Roberts Rinehart, 1988.
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10.38. Mr Fullerton was arrested at 12:40pm on 13 January 1990 by Police Officer 5. He chose not to assist this investigation. Enquiries with PSNI were unable to locate his relevant notebook entry.
10.39. My investigators interviewed another former police officer, Police Officer 6, who was on duty at Fanny Wylies Bridge from 5:00am on 13 January 1990. He stated that approximately 100 RUC officers were deployed in the area for several hours prior to the arrests taking place.
10.40. He stated that he had no direct dealings with Mr Fullerton, adding that police were aware of where the border was, and had been warned by their supervisors that any arrests should only take place on the Northern Ireland side. My investigators reviewed other RUC documentation which indicated that approximately 80 demonstrators were present at the protest. A tractor, at one point, was used to remove concrete blocks from the road.
10.41. My investigators examined Mr Fullerton’s relevant Custody Record from Strand Road RUC Station. This documented that police interviewed him on two occasions. At that time, Strand Road RUC Station did not have audio recording facilities so the interview records were handwritten.
10.42. My investigators have been unable to locate the interview records relating to Mr Fullerton or any of his co-accused. My investigators traced the two detectives who interviewed Mr Fullerton, but they could offer nothing of an evidential value. PSNI do not retain the relevant notebook entries of either officer.
10.43. Mr Fullerton’s Custody Record revealed that he was photographed by a Constable from RUC Photography Branch, Police Officer 9, at 4:59pm on 13 January 1990. My investigators interviewed Police Officer 9, in addition to Police Officers 10, 11, and 12, three members
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of Custody staff who had dealings with Mr Fullerton during his time at Strand Road RUC Station.
10.44. Police Officer 9 stated that, while he had no specific recollection of meeting Mr Fullerton, he would normally have been tasked by a Custody Sergeant to photograph a prisoner. My investigators have been unable to locate the relevant photographs of Mr Fullerton.
10.45. My investigators examined the Custody Records of the 11 arrested individuals, but none of them contained photographs. Police Officers 10, 11, and 12, when interviewed by my investigators, all had different recollections of RUC procedures in 1990 for photographing prisoners. There is no record of Mr Fullerton having made a complaint regarding his treatment at Strand Road RUC Station. The relevant Custody Record stated that he was treated in accordance with his rights at the time.
10.46. Enquiries with the Northern Ireland Court Service, PPS, and PSNI were unable to establish why the charges were withdrawn against all 11 individuals in September 1990. My investigators interviewed the solicitor who represented Mr Fullerton during these criminal proceedings. He could not recall the relevant case, other than it was withdrawn after a number of hearings. He retained no documentation regarding the matter. My investigators interviewed another solicitor who represented one of Mr Fullerton’s co-accused but he, also, could not recall the case and held no relevant documentation.
10.47. My investigators were unable to recover the full RUC prosecution file in respect of the arrests of Mr Fullerton and the other individuals. I am unable to make a determination on the lawfulness of an arrest, as this is a matter which can only be determined by a Court.
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10.48. As stated previously in this public statement, my investigators interviewed Police Officer 12 under criminal caution about intelligence that he socialised in a local bar with suspected members of North West UDA/UFF. Following this, a file of evidence was submitted to the PPS who subsequently directed ‘No Prosecution’ against him.
10.49. I have found no evidence to support the allegation that any member of the RUC supplied information about Mr Fullerton to the UDA/UFF.
That the RUC failed to question individuals convicted of criminal offences linked to the weapons used in the murder of Mr Fullerton. They obstructed the AGS investigation by failing to disclose these links and interview suspects because of Mr Fullerton’s political beliefs.
That the RUC failed to assist the AGS investigation by not sharing with them all relevant intelligence.
10.50. Immediately after the murder, AGS asked the RUC to carry out intelligence checks on a number of individuals from Northern Ireland who they suspected may have been involved. My investigation has established that this information was provided by the RUC in a timely and accurate manner.
10.51. In June 1991, AGS asked the RUC for information regarding two unidentified UVF members from the Derry/Londonderry area who may have been involved in the murder. RUC Special Branch provided two separate pieces of information regarding this request in July 1991. This included that they held no intelligence indicating that UVF members from the Derry/Londonderry area were involved in Mr Fullerton’s murder.
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10.52. My investigators reviewed an AGS report, dated late June 1991, which referred to reliable information they had received regarding a number of individuals suspected of having murdered Mr Fullerton. This report stated that the relevant information was largely consistent with information supplied by the RUC.
10.53. In late August 1991, AGS requested information from the RUC regarding an individual. RUC Special Branch responded to this request the following day, forwarding all relevant intelligence regarding this individual. They stated that they held no intelligence linking him to Mr Fullerton’s murder.
10.54. In January 1993, AGS requested information on Persons J, K, N, and O who they regarded as suspects in Mr Fullerton’s murder. My investigators have found no record of a response from RUC Special Branch to this request.
10.55. In November 1993, the RUC received further intelligence regarding Mr Fullerton’s murder. Later that month, senior RUC officers met with their AGS counterparts and shared this intelligence. It stated that Persons J, K, N, and P were responsible for the murder. My investigators have viewed AGS documentation confirming that this meeting took place and the relevant intelligence was shared.
10.56. This investigation has established that senior RUC officers informed their AGS counterparts that they had interviewed Persons J, K, N, and P about Mr Fullerton’s murder but there had been insufficient evidence to charge them. AGS records examined by my investigators confirmed that the RUC informed AGS that these individuals had been interviewed about Mr Fullerton’s murder. The relevant interview records no longer exist.
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10.57. In December 1993, AGS requested information on Person F, who had recently been charged with the Greysteel attack. RUC Special Branch replied later that month stating that they held no intelligence linking him to Mr Fullerton’s murder.
10.58. In January 2007, following a further review, AGS formally requested the arrests of Persons J, K, N, and P. They were arrested and interviewed by PSNI in June 2009, in addition to a fifth individual, Person W. All five denied the allegations and were subsequently released without charge. During his 2009 interview, Person K stated that he had been previously interviewed about Mr Fullerton’s murder. In December 2021, a man was arrested in Muff, County Donegal in connection to the murder of Mr Fullerton. He was questioned by the AGS, and was subsequently released without charge.
That the RUC failed to record a statement from a witness who lived near the location where the Mitsubishi Lancer car was set on fire following the murder. This witness is alleged to have observed three men get out of the car and get into an unmarked RUC car, indicating that police facilitated the escape of the murderers.
10.59. The RUC interviewed a member of the public, Witness A, who lived at Culmore Point, not far from the scene of the burnt out Mitsubishi Lancer. He stated that he may have observed Mr Fullerton’s murderers crossing the border, back into Northern Ireland. He worked for a media company at the time and had received a telephone call in the early hours of 25 May 1991 asking him to attend the Buncrana and Culmore Point scenes to record film footage. Witness A subsequently travelled to both scenes.
10.60. Witness A informed police that, prior to receiving the telephone call, he was awakened at approximately 3:00am by his dogs barking. He
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looked outside and observed three men walking along the foreshore. Witness A later provided a witness statement to a RUC officer detailing his observations. Between 1991 and 2013, Witness A provided seven statements to the AGS, RUC, legal representatives of Mr Fullerton’s family, and my own investigators regarding this incident. These accounts described the same sequence of events but varied in some respects. My investigators treated Witness A as a significant witness when they interviewed him.
10.61. Witness A informed my investigators that he observed three men, dressed in hooded camouflage clothing, walking along the foreshore before they ‘ducked’ down behind a wall. He stated that he then saw what he described as a high powered Ford Sierra drive along the road, turn around, and pick up the three men. He stated that the Ford Sierra was of a similar make and model to the type used by the RUC at the time. The car then drove away in the direction of Culmore Road. He stated that later that morning, while at the scene of the burnt out Mitsubishi Lancer, he informed a RUC officer about this incident.
10.62. Later that day he was visited by a plain clothed RUC officer and two senior uniformed officers, from the RUC and AGS, who he spoke to in a car outside his house. The police officers asked Witness A to recount what he had seen. He stated that the police officers seemed relieved when he told them that he would not be able to recognise the three men if he saw them again.
10.63. Witness A informed my investigators that he wished to clarify an account he had previously provided to a solicitor representing Mr Fullerton’s family. He had informed the solicitor that the Ford Sierra was a police car. Witness A informed my investigators that this was only an opinion on his part.
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10.64. My investigators also interviewed the wife of Witness A. She stated that her husband was awakened by their dogs barking, before he informed her that there were people on the beach outside. She vaguely recalled that she heard a car driving past their house at speed. Her husband later told her that he thought it sounded like a police car.
10.65. This investigation established that, although the RUC did use armoured unmarked vehicles in 1991, there were no records indicating whether any Ford Sierra cars were on patrol that night. There were no records of any police vehicles crossing at the PVCPs. My investigators interviewed a number of former police officers who were on patrol in the Derry/Londonderry area on the night of Mr Fullerton’s murder. None of them had any knowledge of the incident in question.
10.66. My investigators interviewed a number of former RUC officers who attended the scene of the burnt out Mitsubishi Lancer car. None of them recalled Witness A speaking with any senior police officers. However, one former officer recalled speaking to Witness A, who informed him about the three men he had observed walking outside his house the previous night.
10.67. Scene photographs taken at the time focused on the burnt out vehicle and did not identify any potential witnesses. My investigators established, from the available police documentation, that two RUC Superintendents attended the Coney Road scene. They both declined to assist this investigation and enquiries to locate their relevant police journals proved unsuccessful.
10.68. Documentation examined by my investigators also established that three AGS officers, including the Border Liaison Superintendent, attended the Culmore Point scene. At the request of my investigators, AGS officers engaged with the relevant AGS Border Liaison Superintendent for County Donegal. He informed them that he could
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not now remember the events at that time with any certainty and therefore was unable to assist this investigation. His successor to the role, however, stated that the RUC and AGS had a good working relationship at the time in the Donegal-Derry/Londonderry area. AGS records indicated that the RUC and AGS Border Liaison Superintendents met regularly in respect of Mr Fullerton’s murder.
10.69. Despite establishing that a number of senior RUC and AGS officers attended the Culmore Point scene, this investigation has been unable to identify the senior police officers who spoke to Witness A outside his house. Witness A could not describe the police officers and my investigators have been unable to locate any police documentation relating to their visit. Witness and CCTV enquiries conducted in the Culmore Point area by my investigators proved negative.
That Mr Fullerton’s murder was part of a campaign by the security forces, including members of the RUC, to assassinate high profile Irish republicans.
10.70. My investigators viewed a World in Action television documentary entitled ‘Marked for Murder’ which was aired in June 1991, the month after Mr Fullerton’s murder.
10.71. I have referred in Chapter 5 of this public statement to several loyalist intelligence ‘caches.’ One of these contained a number of newspaper articles that referred to Mr Fullerton. Two of the ‘caches’ were featured in the ‘Marked for Murder’ television documentary. There was also an incident where Mr Fullerton received a threatening post card from a suspected loyalist paramilitary group on 2 April 1990.
10.72. The first intelligence ‘cache’ concerned a large amount of police documentation found at a rubbish dump at Drumaduff, near Limavady, in June 1991. This incident attracted considerable media attention at
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the time. An internal RUC investigation concluded that the security breach was caused by ‘human error.’
10.73. Police stated that a bag found containing documentation intended for incineration had been mistakenly deposited at the wrong rubbish collection point. A senior police officer stated that this had been a ‘serious mistake’ but dismissed allegations of collusion as ‘nonsense.’ He stated that none of the relevant documentation was of a sensitive nature and it contained no photo montages.
10.74. My investigators conducted enquiries with both the PSNI and PPS but were unable to locate the relevant RUC investigation report. However, two police officers involved in the investigation, a Detective Chief Inspector and Detective Sergeant, informed my investigators that the Drumaduff documentation did not contain any material relating to Mr Fullerton or any other leading republicans. This was confirmed by a local Sinn Féin councillor who viewed the relevant documentation. He stated that, had it contained information relating to Mr Fullerton, he would have informed the media given that the find occurred less than a month after his murder.
10.75. The second significant loyalist intelligence ‘cache’ followed the arrest of an individual who had been observed acting suspiciously outside the home of a Derry/Londonderry republican in November 1989. During follow-up searches, police recovered a large amount of documentation relating to suspected PIRA members and leading republicans in the area. One typed document entitled ‘IRA Personnel 1989 Republic of Ireland’ included the home address and a photograph of Mr Fullerton.
10.76. In November 1991, ten individuals were convicted of various offences relating to this intelligence ‘cache.’ None of the relevant documentation originated from the RUC, although some military material was
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included. I have found no evidence that Mr Fullerton was informed of this incident.
10.77. The television documentary included a RUC montage of suspects, including a photograph of Mr Fullerton. My investigators established that this was an open source image that had been imposed onto a supposed RUC document by the programme makers for theatrical purposes.
10.78. My investigators interviewed a Sinn Féin councillor from the Derry/Londonderry area. He stated that he was asked to attend Strand Road RUC Station where he was informed by police that they had recovered documentation from loyalist sources containing his personal details. He recalled seeing a photograph of Mr Fullerton amongst the documentation. He could not recall when this meeting took place or which police officers were present.
10.79. This investigation has established that the relevant RUC Force Order (Force Order 33/86) at the time, relating to threats to life, instructed that all threats against an individual should be passed to RUC Special Branch, who would then disseminate the information accordingly. The relevant RUC Force Order contained no guidance as to what action should be taken regarding a threat made against a resident of the Republic of Ireland.
10.80. The family of Mr Fullerton informed my investigators that he was not warned of a threat against him by either the RUC or AGS. This investigation found no records to indicate that the RUC provided a threat warning to him. The AGS informed my investigators that they held no records indicating that they had received information from the RUC that Mr Fullerton was under threat from loyalist paramilitaries.
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10.81. On 2 April 1990, Mr Fullerton received a postcard with a Derry/Londonderry postmark from the ‘Maiden City Action Force.’ It contained the following handwritten message, ‘Hello Eddie, just to let you know you are next.’ It was signed ‘Colonel Murray.’ He handed the postcard to AGS, who investigated the matter as the offence occurred in their jurisdiction. The AGS made the RUC aware of the details of the threat and sought their assistance in conducting a number of enquiries. The RUC responded to an AGS request for information about this grouping. The ‘Maiden City Action Force’ was thought to have been the pseudonym for a loyalist paramilitary organisation.
10.82. My investigators established, following a review of relevant documentation, that AGS made enquiries with the RUC at the time, who provided them with information relating to the ‘Maiden City Action Force.’ AGS records indicated that Mr Fullerton was concerned about the threat and was taking extra security measures.
10.83. On 13 June 1991, a second postcard was sent to the Fullerton family address bearing a Coleraine postmark. Written on one side of the card was ‘RIP’ and on the other side ‘UFF’. This was forwarded to AGS by the family but my investigators have been unable to establish if the RUC and/or NIFSL were requested to conduct any additional enquiries.
10.84. A third documentation find in the Portrush area followed the arrest of Person J in February 1991. In 1993, RUC Special Branch received intelligence naming him as one of four individuals responsible for the murder of Mr Fullerton. Documentation recovered from the Portrush address referred to a number of republicans, but not Mr Fullerton.
10.85. I note the family’s concerns that Mr Fullerton was murdered as part of a campaign by security forces. My jurisdiction is limited to the investigation of police conduct and does not extend to the investigation
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of the actions of other members of the security forces. However, this investigation has found no evidence that Mr Fullerton’s murder was part of an RUC campaign by the security forces, including members of the RUC, to assassinate high profile Irish republicans.
That RUC officers allowed those responsible for Mr Fullerton’s murder safe passage across the border.
10.86. In May 1991, there were three Permanent Vehicle Check Points (PVCPs) situated on the border between Donegal and Derry/Londonderry. They were staffed 24 hours a day by the military, supported by the RUC. A computerised system at each PVCP recorded the vehicle registration numbers of all vehicles that passed through in either direction.
10.87. The PVCP at Culmore Road was the nearest one to where the burnt out Mitsubishi Lancer car was found. It was positioned approximately half a mile inside the Northern Ireland border. The scene of the burnt out car was also in Northern Ireland, but it had been abandoned at a location between the border and the relevant PVCP. The distance from the deposition site to the scene of the murder was approximately 13 miles and it was estimated that a car journey between the two points would have taken approximately 16 minutes. AGS set up VCPs following Mr Fullerton’s murder, but it is probable that the stolen car would have passed these locations prior to them being established.
10.88. The other two PVCPs were situated on the Letterkenny Road and Buncrana Road. The RUC were first made aware of the attack at 2:50am when the Communications Room at Strand Road RUC Station received a message of a ‘report of shooting from Buncrana Garda.’
10.89. Those responsible for Mr Fullerton’s murder could have walked back into Northern Ireland via any number of routes after setting the
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Mitsubishi Lancer on fire. Most border crossing roads had been blocked by the military but were often made accessible again by local residents within a short period. This investigation was unable to establish if all border crossings were impassable at the time of Mr Fullerton’s murder.
10.90. Efforts by my investigators to identify police and military personnel on duty at Culmore Road PVCP on the night of the murder proved unsuccessful. No records existed in respect of roster duties. My investigators established that police officers staffing the checkpoint would have primarily been uniformed personnel from Shantallow RUC Station. My investigators interviewed a number of former police officers who performed these duties. Conflicting accounts were obtained. Some stated that the PVCP was staffed solely by military personnel at night, while others recalled that it was military and RUC officers.
10.91. Following the murder, AGS requested the details of all the vehicles that passed through the Culmore Road and Buncrana Road PVCPs for a 24 hour period between 9:00am on 24 May 1991 and 9:00am on 25 May 1991. The RUC forwarded the requested PVCP records to AGS in a timely manner. My investigation established that approximately 6000 vehicles passed through these PVCPs during the relevant period.
10.92. AGS officers reviewed this information and asked the RUC to conduct further enquiries regarding a number of vehicles of interest to them. These enquiries related to vehicles with similar registration plate numbers to a number of cars observed in the Buncrana area around the time of the murder.
10.93. Two vehicles with links to the security forces were recorded as having crossed into Northern Ireland at the Buncrana Road PVCP on the night of the murder. These crossings occurred at 2:06am and 7:10am
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respectively on 25 May 1991. My investigators traced and interviewed the driver of the vehicle that made the first crossing. He stated that, at the time, he worked for an electrical appliance retailer situated on a military base in Northern Ireland. He stated that he used the vehicle for non-work related purposes and often drove to social events in Donegal. He added that he could not recall the evening in question but it was likely that he could have crossed the border at the relevant time as the events he attended often ended late at night.
10.94. This investigation did not establish the reason for the second car crossing at 7:10am. My investigators identified the owner of the vehicle but he is now deceased. The car was also registered to the same electrical appliance retailer referred to above.
10.95. There was no record of any police vehicles passing through the PVCPs during the relevant period. Neither was there any record of a Ford Sierra car crossing into Northern Ireland.
10.96. This investigation considered whether those responsible for Mr Fullerton’s murder crossed the border by a route other than through a PVCP. At the time, AGS asked the RUC to carry out a number of enquiries in respect of a boat which may have been used to cross Lough Foyle. The RUC did so, but there was no evidence or intelligence gathered to support this theory. This investigation has found no evidence that a RUC officer allowed those responsible for Mr Fullerton’s murder safe passage across the border back into Northern Ireland.
10.97. This investigation has found no evidence or intelligence that the RUC assisted those responsible for Mr Fullerton’s murder to cross the border, back into Northern Ireland.
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Summary
10.97. I am of the view that in general, the RUC enquiries conducted on behalf of the AGS, were completed in a timely and thorough manner. Although, my investigators have found no record that AGS intelligence requests in June 1991 and January 1993 were responded to by RUC Special Branch.
10.98. As referred to earlier in this public statement, I have no found no evidence that the RUC made either Mr Fullerton or AGS aware that personal information relating to him had been found in a loyalist intelligence ‘cache’ in Derry/Londonderry in November 1989.