THE BROTHER OF a man who was murdered by the IRA’s “nutting squad” for being an alleged informer has said the truth about his brother’s death has led to more questions.
In 1979, Michael Kearney was 20 years old when he was shot dead by the IRA’s “nutting squad”, which interrogated suspected informers during the Troubles.
Michael’s body was later found dumped on a border road in Co Fermanagh.
His brother Séamus, who was also a member of the IRA, was told that he had been killed for being an informant.
Speaking to RTÉ’s Prime Time for an interview that will air tonight, Séamus recalled the moment when a priest visited him in prison to tell him about his brother’s death.
“I says, ‘is Michael dead?’ He says ‘yes, he’s dead’. And I said, ‘all I want to know is was it the British Army or the RUC’?
“He says, probably the worst news conceivable, ‘it wasn’t the British Army or the RUC. It was the Irish Republican Army’.
“My legs buckled. I hit the chair and everything went into a spin in slow motion.”
Michael’s murder is one of the cases being looked at by Operation Kenova, which is examining crimes such as murder and torture linked to Stakeknife, and the role played by the security services, including MI5.
Freddie Scappaticci, who recently died in England, has been widely named as Stakeknife but had always denied the allegation.
The inquiry is due to publish a detailed report of its findings soon.
Speaking after Scappaticci’s death in April, Jon Boutcher, who is heading Operation Kenova, said: “We recognise that people may now feel more able to talk to the Kenova team following the death of Mr Scappaticci, who had been long accused by many of being involved in the kidnap, murder and torture of potential PIRA informants during The Troubles.
“I appeal to anyone with information that might help those impacted by the events we are investigating to contact us in confidence to help families understand what happened during these difficult times.”
Boutcher added: “We remain committed to providing families with the truth of what happened to their loved ones and continue to actively pursue criminal charges against several individuals.”
Séamus told RTÉ that it was a “terrible stigma” to be labelled an informer.
He said that when he was released from prison in 1986, his mother pleaded with him to find out if Michael really was an informer.
In 2003, senior IRA figures delivered a statement to Séamus which acknowledged that Michael was never an informer.
Séamus told RTE’s Prime Time: “The army [IRA] read out the report saying he was cleared, he wasn’t an informer.”
This was followed by an apology to the family on behalf of the IRA.
However, Michael said the details he learned about his brother’s death has led to more questions.
Solicitor Kevin Winters represents the families of 12 victims of the IRA’s internal security department, including the Kearney family.
He told RTÉ: “Justice here is to find, not only the people who pulled triggers and killed individuals before a court, but significantly – and this is something that sometimes gets overlooked – the people who orchestrated and oversaw this mass process of an informant at the apex of British military intelligence inside the IRA involved in killing people or overseeing the deaths of many, many people.”
Brother, Informer, Soldier, Spy will air tonight on RTÉ One and the RTÉ Player at 9.35pm.
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