£5000 to become informer
In a concerted attempt to recruit informers the RUC in Lurgan
have offered cash inducements to each of six Lurgan men who were
arrested in the past two weeks. One man was told by a
plainclothes RUC man, ``there's an open wallet, money is no
obstacle''. He then offerred him £5,000 to supply information about
republicans from the Kilwilkie area. This man also believed the
RUC were following him as he spotted two men watching him as he
collected his girlfriend from work the week before he was
arrested.
The six were arrested in two batches of three and told they were
to be questioned about rioting and hi-jacking in the town during
July after the Garvaghy Road crisis, however none was actually
questioned about this during the 36 hours they were in custody.
All were offered cash to work for the RUC, or as one Branchman
put it, ``to help us''.
One 19 year old was offered £1,000 but the RUC said he could only
collect the money after he supplied information.
The RUC threatened one man within minutes of offering him money,
``you'll be getting into your car one day with your wife and two
kids and you'll all be blown to bits'', he was warned.
Sinn Fein councillor John O'Dowd said he has been inundated with
complaints from local people about the behaviour of the crown
forces in the area in the past month. He added, ``these attempts
to recruit informers are sinister in the extreme. People should
be aware it's happening and should they be approached in this way
be sure to contact a solicitor, councillor or priest to highlight
the incident. It needs to be exposed''.
South Belfast Sinn Féin Councillor Sean Hayes has disclosed that
two of his constituents were approached by the RUC last week to
work as informers.
He said, ``a young man was pressurised by the RUC to spy on
republicans using the Sinn Fein advice centre on the Lower Ormeau
Road. He was also offered money.''
He continued, ``another man travelling from Short Strand to
Liverpool for a soccer match was also approached to act as an
informer.''
Hayes pointed out that ``these attempts to coerce people into
informing, the continued saturation of nationalist areas by the
British Army and RUC, raids on homes, harassment of people, the
reinforcement and fortification of military bases and the
continuing military agenda are in stark contrast to the Mitchel
principles that the British government signed up to.''
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