Bed of Lies: State Collusion and Agents in The Troubles

The McCabe Family's Ordeal

• 🎯 In 1990, the McCabe family in Newry was targeted by the IRA, with Peter McCabe shot in his leg during a home invasion.
• 💔 The family was forced to flee their home and live on the run for five years, experiencing deep trauma and lasting psychological effects.
• 🔍 Decades later, they discovered the IRA gunman, Kevin Fulton, was actually a British agent named Peter Keelley, highlighting the state's complex role.

The Role of State Agents and Collusion

• 🕵️ Kevin Winter, a lawyer representing victims, discusses the extensive legal cases arising from state collusion with agents within paramilitary groups like the IRA and loyalists.
• ⚠️ Unpicking the scale of wrongdoing by agents is highly sensitive, often involving closed courts and injunctions due to state and ex-paramilitary opposition.
• 🧩 Peter Keelley, operating as Kevin Fulton, was embedded in the IRA by the British Army, involved in activities like bomb-making and punishment shootings, while also claiming to save lives.

The "Flash Unit" and its Deadly Consequences

• 💥 Peter Keelley's intelligence on the IRA's "flash unit" technology, used for remote detonation, led to the development of a car bomb that killed Constable Colleen McMurray and injured Paul Slain.
• ⚖️ Despite Keelley's intelligence, no one was convicted for Constable McMurray's murder, and her husband later sued the police and Ministry of Defense.
• 😔 Keelley's own account reveals a desensitization and dehumanization from his role, admitting to feeling little at the time of the bombing.

Human Bombs and Unpunished Crimes

• 💣 The podcast details the horrific use of "human bombs," such as Coleman Makavoy, who was forced to drive a bomb-laden van to an army checkpoint under threat to his family.
• 🎖️ Soldiers like Sirill Smith Jr. were killed in such attacks, with Smith Jr. being posthumously awarded a medal for his heroic actions in trying to save others.
• ❓ Families of victims like the McCabes, Makavoys, and Smiths are pursuing civil cases, seeking justice and answers for the state's alleged protection of agents involved in these atrocities.

The Mobile Shop Murders and Systemic Failures

• 🔪 In 1991, loyalists murdered three young people, Eileen Duffy, Katrina Renie, and Brian Friselle, in a sectarian attack at a mobile shop in Craigavon.
• 🚫 Despite Thomas Harper confessing and naming the gunman, Alan Oliver, police released Oliver without charge, and crucial evidence was later destroyed.
• 🕵️ Families suspect Oliver and UVF leader Billy Wright were protected agents, citing their impunity and involvement in numerous unpunished killings.

The Legacy of Impunity and Collusion

• 🔫 The Mid-Ulster UVF gang, allegedly led by Billy Wright and involving agents like Alan Oliver, imported hundreds of weapons from South Africa, facilitated by the army, which were used in over 200 killings.
• ⚖️ A civil court later found Alan Oliver liable for the mobile shop murders, but he remains free, living near his victims' families.
• 💔 The series concludes by questioning whether the state is truly getting away with murder, given the evidence of collusion and the lack of accountability for agents involved in widespread violence and death during The Troubles.