Séamus Ludlow

Séamus Ludlow aged 47 years of Thistlecross, Mountpleasant, Dundalk, County Louth, in the Irish Republic. A Catholic bachelor employed as a forestry worker, Séamus lived with his elderly mother Mrs. Annie Ludlow in his lifelong home in County Louth along with a married sister, Mrs. Nan Sharkey, her husband and their family.

Séamus was abducted and murdered by armed Loyalists and British soldiers outside the town of Dundalk on the night of 1st/2nd May 1976. He was last seen thumbing a lift home from the pub at around midnight before he disappeared.

Despite false claims (that were encouraged by the Irish Gardai) that Séamus Ludlow had been murdered by the IRA because he was an informer, it is now known that both the Gardai and the RUC in the north of Ireland were aware, at least in 1979 (if not even earlier) that the killers were in fact Loyalists. They knew that they included at least two locally recruited members of the British army.

The killers all came from the Comber and Newtownards areas of north Down. Information which would have identified these killers was suppressed for more than 20 years, allowing these men to remain free and at liberty to kill again. Why were these men being protected? Why were they above the law?

Four Loyalists were arrested by the RUC in February 1998. They were all released without charge pending an investigation report being sent to the Northern Ireland Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP). On 15 October 1999 the DPP ruled that none of the suspects would be charged with any offence, even though two of them had signed incriminating statements while in RUC custody.

The Ludlow family has demanded public inquiries on both sides of the border to uncover exactly why Séamus Ludlow's murder was never properly investigated.

They want to know why Séamus Ludlow's name was smeared by the authorities and why his killers were never brought to justice by the Gardai or by the RUC, who had identified them many years ago. They demand the full truth and justice for an innocent victim who never received either from the authorities in the past.

The Ludlow family wants to know who gave the orders for the cover-up of the evidence and the smearing of the victim. Who was being protected, and why? Why was the Ludlow family excluded from their loved-one's inquest on 19th August 1976. Will those individuals responsible for the abuses of authority in this case ever be brought to account for their actions?

The Troops Out Movement join with the Justice for Séamus Ludlow Campaign in their demand for a public inquiry into his murder.

 

 

Ludlow family consider civil case against Garda
Irish News 11/02/04

The family of Seamus Ludlow is to consider suing the Garda Siochana after Justice Henry Barron publishes his report into the 1976 murder. The revelation comes as a Sunday newspaper claimed that a British-based loyalist is expected to be questioned over the murder.

Samuel Black-Carroll, now living in the Midlands, was among four suspects arrested and quizzed by the RUC in 1998 in connection with the murder of the Catholic forestry worker near his Co Louth home.

Mr Ludlow's family was infuriated when the DPP revealed that it had no plans to bring charges against the four in 1999.

His nephew Kevin Sharkey last night (Tuesday) said he now believed that Mr Ludlow's killers would never face justice because both the PSNI and the Garda lacked the will to satisfactorily complete their investigations.

Seamus Ludlow's family is currently awaiting the publication of a report by Judge Barron into the killing 28 years ago. It is expected that the document will be made public before the spring.

Relatives have continued to claim that no charges were ever brought by the Northern Ireland authorities in relation to the murder because a key figure was an informant, who was also a member of the Red Hand Commandos.

Mr Sharkey said: "I personally believe that those responsible for Seamus's murder will never be brought to justice because the PSNI and the gardai don't want to open old sores.

"Now we want to go after the people who suppressed evidence after the murder and that's why we will consider taking a civil case against the gardai after the Barron report is published."

Relatives are scheduled to hold a meeting with the former Supreme Court judge later this month to discuss his ongoing investigation.

Justice Barron already reported in December that he believed it was "likely" that elements of the British security forces colluded with loyalist paramilitaries to carry out the 1974 Dublin and Monaghan bombings.

During his three-year inquiry, the judge was, however, unable to establish whether the British government or any senior police or British army figures had worked with the UVF to plan the car bomb attacks which killed 33 people and an unborn baby.

Last month, an Oireachtas sub-committee began hearings in Dublin to consider the findings of the judge's report.

Meanwhile, the Birmingham-based Sunday Mercury newspaper reported at the weekend that Samuel Black-Carroll may be detained and questioned for a second time about the Ludlow killing.

The 50-year-old, dubbed Mambo by his associates, was linked to UDA commander John McKeague, who was killed by the INLA in 1982.

He is understood to move between Liverpool and Rugeley in Stafford-shire where he has lived since the late 1980s, but spent time behind bars four years ago after he attacked a man whom he claimed had called him "Semtex Sam".

 

 

Sister 'may die' before the truth is uncovered
Irish News 18/09/04

The sister of Seamus Ludlow, a Dundalk forestry worker shot dead in 1976, has said she fears she will die before the truth about her brother's murder is revealed.

Kathleen Donegan (73), from Dromintee in south Armagh, was rushed to Daisy Hill Hospital in Newry on Tuesday after she fell and broke her hip.

Since then, she has contracted several life-threatening infections. She was transferred yesterday (Friday) morning to the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast for surgery.

From her hospital bed, Mrs Donegan, who has two surviving sisters and a brother, told relatives she wanted to see a public inquiry into Mr Ludlow's death before she died.

"I think my mother has been through enough," her daughter Anne Murray said.

"She has had a terrible year – she has been in and out of hospital for months – but this week has been one of the worst times for her. She has been in a lot of pain and we just wanted to see her get the operation and get better.

"The nurses and doctors in Daisy Hill and the Royal have been brilliant, but being in hospital for so long has left her very weak and vulnerable to infection. The one thing she said to us was that she wanted to be around for the truth to come out about my Uncle Seamus's murder."

Mr Ludlow, a bachelor, was walking home from a pub outside Dundalk in May 1976 when he was bundled into a car by loyalists, two of whom are alleged to have been members of the UDR. His body was found in a laneway near his home.

He was not involved in any political activity, but in the weeks after his murder his family alleged gardai spread rumours that the IRA killed him because he was an informer.

The claim was strenuously denied by republicans and the victim's family.

Mr Justice Barron, who published a report for the Irish government into the Dublin and Monaghan bombings earlier this year, is currently examining the case. Relatives of Mr Ludlow met the former judge last month and were told that the findings would be ready by the end of September.

Michael Donegan, who has long campaigned for a public inquiry into his uncle's murder, said the family had been waiting almost 30 years for justice.

"We are still waiting for a fresh inquest to be opened in Dundalk. It was announced in July 2002 and it still hasn't opened," he said.

"We met Justice Barron just over a month ago. In fact we have seen him several times in Dundalk and Dublin.

"The family's main focus remains getting a public inquiry. I don't know if Barron is going to recommend one, or if it is even in his power to do so, but we will keep pushing for that. It has been an awful long wait and the truth is that time is running out for my mother and her siblings."

 

 

Garda report on murder released
Irish News 27/10/04

A Coroner will today begin studying an unpublished Garda report about the 1976 investigation into the murder Co Louth forestry worker Seamus Ludlow.

Louth County Coroner Ronan Maguire yesterday received the internal Garda report by retired Chief Superintendent Ted Murphy - more than two years after he was ordered by the Republic's Attorney Genereral to reopen the inquest into Mr Ludlow's death.

Mr Maguire revealed that he had received the long-awaited and "quite hefty" document as it emerged that a separate report about the murder, compiled by retired Supreme Court judge Mr Justice Henry Barron, is now in the possession of the Irish government.

Judge Barron, who last year compiled a report into the 1974 Dublin and Monaghan bombings, presented the report to the government last week.

It will go before cabinet before being considered by the Houses of the Oireachtas prior to publication.

The Louth coroner had met with senior gardai on a number of occasions to request a copy of the Murphy report about the original garda investigation into the 1976 murder of the 47-year-old bachelor by loyalist paramilitaries.

Earlier this month, Mr Maguire told the Irish News that he was planning to take the matter to the Attorney General Rory Brady if gardai continued to fail to cooperate.

Mr Maguire has also revealed that he plans to ask Chief Supt Murphy to give evidence at the inquest about the report he completed six years ago.

He estimated that it would take him a week to complete studying the report, describing the decision by gardai to hand it over as a "very important step forward".

Mr Ludlow's nephew, Michael Donegan, described his uncle's case as a "burning sore" which continued to fester almost 30 years after the abduction and murder.

He said relatives hoped that they would be able to see the report in its entirety, adding: "If there were any string attached for the gardai to give it to the coroner, then that is not acceptable," Mr Donegan said.

"We want everything out in the open. If the report identifies people who did wrong or who failed to carry out their duty to bring Uncle Seamus;' killers to justice then we would want a criminal investigation.

"They were there to uphold the law and protect the innocent, but my uncle wasn't protected."

Mr Donegan welcomed the fact that the coroner had been given the document as a "big step forward".

He also paid tribute to a London-based human rights activist for her efforts to ensure that Mr Maguire received the Murphy Report.

Jane Winter, director of British Irish Rights Watch (BIRW), wrote to the Attorney General and the Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy last week seeking their intervention in the matter.

In her letter, BIRW director Jane Winter said: "It has been an open secret for some time now that Seamus Ludlow, a wholly innocent and inoffensive man, was murdered by loyalists during a border incursion by Northern Ireland soldiers who were also paramilitaries - a matter which we would have thought would have been of utmost concern to the Irish government."

Ms Winter said the Ludlow family had been waiting an "unconscionable" 28 years for justice".

 

 

Ludlow murder report to be published soon
Irish News 10/03/05

The Barron report on the 1976 loyalist murder of Catholic forestry worker Seamus Ludlow is to be published “within weeks”, the Irish News has learned.

The Irish government has been considering the contents of the report since it was submitted by Mr Justice Henry Barron last year.

A government source last night said officials remained concerned about the possible repercussions of publishing certain names contained in the document.

It is understood the names include those of the chief murder suspects, investigating gardai and witnesses.

“The government must consider whether any risk would be posed to those named in the report. It is an issue of right to life. The government must consider whether people could become targets,” the source said.

However, he added that the government remained keen to “‘put as much in the report as possible”.

“In the case of the Barron reports on the 1974 Dublin and Monaghan bombings as well as the ‘72 and ‘73 Dublin bombings, the government wanted to put as many names out there as possible.

“That’s likely to be the same attitude with the Ludlow report,” he said.

It is hoped Judge Barron’s findings could be made public by Easter.

The report will be presented to the Dail before being considered by members of the Joint committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women’s Rights.

It is likely that the committee, which has already studied the Barron reports on the loyalist bomb attacks on Dublin and Monaghan during the early 1970s, will hold a series of hearings before making a number of recommendations to the government.

The names of the four men suspected of abducting and murdering Mr Ludlow as he walked home from a Dundalk pub in May 1976 have been in the public domain through media reports.

Mr Ludlow’s relatives have repeatedly called on the Irish government to set up a public inquiry to uncover the full facts surrounding the murder.

The family was disappointed after it emerged in 1999 that the Northern Ireland DPP had decided not to charge four suspects despite their arrest one year earlier.

They have continued to express concern about allegations of a cover-up involving security forces on both sides of the border to protect those involved.

Meanwhile, relatives are continuing to wait for a new inquest into Mr Ludlow’s death to be held by Louth county coroner Ronan Maguire.

In December, Mr Maguire told the Irish News that he was confident of holding a preliminary hearing into the 1976 border killing in early January.

However, it is understood that he is still awaiting further information on the case from the Gardai. The coroner has already completed his study of an internal garda report, compiled by retired Chief Superintendent Ted Murphy, into the initial murder investigation.

The Ludlow relatives have described the case as a “burning sore” which has continued to fester for three decades after the abduction and murder.

 

 

'There are top politicians with blood on their hands'
Sunday Tribune 22/05/05

Seamus Ludlow never stayed out after midnight. He was 47 but he lived with his elderly mother and he knew she worried. Annie was bedridden. "Are you home yet Seamus?" she'd keep shouting down the hall until he returned from the pub.

"He was a mammy's boy, no question about it," says his nephew Jimmy Sharkey. "He was a grown man who never grew up. He was so quiet you wouldn't know he was in the house.

"No-one was more inoffensive. When my granny gave off at him, there'd be no back cheek; he'd just leave the room. He wasn't an idiot mind you, just a simple fellow."

Seamus was a forestry worker. He lived at Thistle Cross, outside Dundalk, with Annie, his sister Nan, and her 10 children. "Seamus and I shared a bedroom. He was more like a brother than an uncle," says Sharkey. "He always told us, 'never bring trouble to the door'."

Another nephew, Michael Donegan, agrees: "The only extraordinary thing about him was his death." On May 2 1976, Seamus Ludlow was abducted and killed by loyalists. One is widely believed to have been an MI5 or RUC Special Branch agent; another two were allegedly UDR men.

Thumbing a lift home from the Lisdoo Arms about 11.40 p.m., Seamus unwittingly got into his killers' car. He was shot three times from point-blank range; his body dumped. Annie, 79, wasn't told that. The family just said he'd been knocked down. They thought the truth would break her heart. She died a year later anyway.

No-one has ever been charged with the murder. A preliminary hearing, in advance of a full inquest, opens in Dundalk courthouse on Tuesday. The family allege "massive wrong-doing" by both the Irish and British authorities.

"They talk about cross-Border co-operation - we had a cross-Border cover-up," says Donegan. "I don't say this lightly but there are top political and security figures effectively with blood on their hands," says Sharkey.

"We suspect there was a secret agreement whereby the South turned a blind eye to British security forces, and their agents, operating across the Border."

The family has been continually refused a public inquiry. They say that's difficult to understand because Seamus wasn't even a republican; he was a Fine Gael member. "He wasn't very active but he attended a few meetings and put up posters at election time," says Sharkey.

"The then Defence Minister, Patrick Donegan, visited the house privately after the murder but not one Fine Gael minister or TD attended the funeral. A member of their own party was murdered, yet their correspondence to us remains cold and matter-of-fact.

"Fianna Fail is no better. I met Bertie Ahern while on a wider victims' delegation, but he has refused a separate meeting with our family since. We had a bad-tempered meeting with John O'Donoghue who treated us with contempt.

"We've every sympathy for the McCartney sisters, but it's sad to see how much Southern politicians do for them and how little for us." The family's solicitor, James McGuill, says Michael McDowell has been one of the few helpful politicians and was instrumental in securing the new inquest.

It had been a normal Saturday for Seamus Ludlow. After finishing work at Ravensdale Forest, he got cleaned up, and headed to the pub. "He'd have a few bottles of Guinness and a game of cards or darts," says Sharkey. "He'd no interest in chasing women."

"He didn't know many people outside the family or work," says Donegan. "He'd never been more than a few miles down the road in his life. He was a good man for digging wells and planting hedges. He played the mouth organ. He'd have a few tunes for his mother in the bed to cheer her up. The highlight of his year was dressing up as Santa for the kids at Christmas."

A "Catholic bachelor" is how the family publicly described afterwards. He was a soft target for the three Red Hand Commando members and one UDA man, from Co Down, in their yellow Datsun. The family believe they'd crossed the Border to kill a Dundalk man, now deceased, whose name is known to the Sunday Tribune. He had both IRA and British intelligence links.

"They couldn't find him and they were psyched up to kill. It was a case of 'any Taig will do'. Seamus was in the wrong place at the wrong time," says Donegan. The next afternoon, a family out walking noticed that the cows in a field in Johnston's lane, off the Bog Road, were agitated by something in the ditch. They went over. It was the body of Seamus Ludlow.

"The Gardai were smart. Publicly, they said 'we're keeping an open mind'; privately, they briefed the family Seamus had seen something and been killed by the IRA as an informer," says Donegan. Senior republicans visited the house and denied this. Young family members believed them; older ones took the Gardai's word.

There was strange behaviour. Kevin Ludlow, Seamus's brother, was the sole family member informed of the original inquest that August. He received only 45 minutes' notice. He was working in the North and didn't make it back in time. So none of the Ludlows, nor their legal representatives, were present to ask vital questions or protest at the failure to present forensic or ballistic evidence.

The family later discovered the murder weapon was a .38 Smith and Wesson, standard issue to the UDR. "One of the bullets fired remains with Gardai. The other two were sent North for forensic examination - they've gone missing," says Sharkey.

"There is no record in RUC files of any search for the yellow car which we believe passed through several owners before ending up in the scrap yard." It wasn't until the mid-1990s the family found out the full extent of the apparent cover-up.

"In 1977, the RUC identified three of the suspects," says Sharkey. "They gave a file with their names to Gardai in 1979, but we were never informed of this. Until the 1990s, family members were still being told the IRA was responsible.

"We want to know why the RUC didn't give Gardai the information in 1977. We want to know why, when they were told, Gardai didn't seek these men's extradition, or at least request the RUC arrest and interrogate them. Why did the RUC do nothing for two decades and why did Gardai let them?''

In 1998, the RUC did arrest and questioned four loyalists about the murder. They were released without charge. One - an alleged informer who has been interrogated about several other murders including that of former Sinn Féin vice-president, Maire Drumm - was flown over from England. He insists he is innocent.

Chief Supt Ted Murphy headed an inquiry into the original Gardai murder investigation. The family have never seen his 1998 report. They're also still awaiting Mr Justice Henry Barron's private report into Seamus's murder, presented to the Government last October.

"We were granted a new inquest three years ago and we're still only at the preliminaries," says Donegan. "I'd like to believe things are moving, but I'm wary."

Sharkey agrees: "Our experience shows that while this state rightly makes demands from the British for Northern Catholics, it's not too keen on justice and transparency for its own citizens."

 

 

Garda chiefs 'sat on murder report'
Irish Independent 06/09/05

A former senior Garda officer told an inquest into the death of a Co Louth man murdered by loyalists 29 years ago that he knew in 1979 the names of four UDA members who shot him.

Retired Detective Chief Superintendent John Courtney told an inquest on Seamus Ludlow in Dundalk yesterday that he sent a report on the murder to Garda headquarters but his superiors "sat on it".

Mr Courtney, who led the murder investigation, said he was made aware in February 1979 following a meeting with RUC officers that four members of the UDA were involved in the murder. The four were "very, very strong suspects" and he requested permission from Garda headquarters to have them interviewed, but it never came.

Mr Courtney said he had ruled out IRA involvement in the murder after about three months, despite the fact that other gardai had repeatedly told the Ludlow family for years afterwards that the IRA had shot Mr Ludlow.

He said he wrote a report and it was sent to C3, the special branch in Garda headquarters dealing with subversives. "I heard no more about it. I made inquiries but was told nothing was being done."

Mr Courtney said he rang a detective sergeant friend of his in C3 and enquired about the report, but he was told "the man in charge wouldn't do anything about it". When he asked why, he got no answer.

Evidence was also given by former state pathologist Prof John Harbison who carried out the post mortem on Mr Ludlow the day after his death.

Prof Harbison said that one of the shots fired at him went through the man's hand, indicating he tried to defend himself. The fatal shot went through his heart and lung, and lodged in his back.

The body of factory worker Seamus Ludlow (47) body was found in a ditch in a laneway just off the main Dundalk-Newry road on May 2, 1976. He had been shot three times in the chest at close range after being picked up by four men while thumbing home from a local pub.

The Ludlow family has claimed that four loyalists, including two Ulster Defence Regiment soldiers, were responsible for the murder, and have alleged British army collusion in his death and a Garda cover-up in the investigation that followed.

No-one has ever been charged with his murder and no group has ever claimed responsibility.

An independent commission of inquiry headed by My Justice Henry Barron examined the file on Mr Ludlow's murder, and submitted a report to the Government on the issue in October last year but it has not been made public.

An inquest was held in Dundalk in August 1976, but his family was never told about it.

The new inquest opened yesterday at the direction of the Attorney General and continues tomorrow.

 

 

Family in Ludlow killing renew plea for public inquiry
Irish Independent 07/09/05

The family of a man murdered by loyalists 29 years ago last night called for a public inquiry into his death.

They made the plea following the conclusion of an inquest into the death of Seamus Ludlow (47) of Culfore, Dundalk, whose body was found dumped in a ditch 500 yards from his home on May 2, 1976.

Last night, nephew Jimmy Sharkey said he believed evidence disclosed at the inquest strengthened their calls for a public inquiry.

Senior gardai told the inquest they had information as far back as 1979 that loyalists were involved in the murder, but nothing was done about it. The inquest heard that the RUC had passed on the names and addresses of strong suspects to gardai but despite requests by gardai for authority to interview the men, garda headquarters did not act on it.

Retired Chief Superintendent, Ted Murphy, said he was ordered in 1996 by the then garda commissioner to review the case following petitions by the Ludlow family.

He said information passed on to the then investigating officer, retired Chief Superintendent John Courtney, by the RUC in 1979 that four men with Loyalist connections were strong suspects in the murder proved accurate.

The four suspects were interviewed by the RUC. Two of the four gave detailed accounts of how the murder was carried out, which fitted with the facts, added Mr Murphy.

But a decision was made by the DPP in Northern Ireland not to prosecute. This information was passed on to Garda headquarters by former Chief Supt John Courtney in 1979, with a request to interview the men, but Chief Supt Courtney claimed in evidence that his garda superiors had "sat on it".

The inquest jury returned a verdict of unlawful killing.

 

 

Taoiseach must insist on full British co-operation with Séamus Ludlow hearings
TOM News 04/11/05

Sinn Féin Dáil leader Caoimhghin Ó Caoláin has said the Taoiseach must insist on full co-operation from the British government and its agencies in the forthcoming Oireachtas Committee hearings on the murder of Séamus Ludlow.

Mr Ó Caoláin's comments come after the Independent Commission of Inquiry report into the 1976 murder of Séamus Ludlow did not clearly establish who killed the Dundalk forestry worker.

The 100-page report by Mr Justice Henry Barron said Mr Ludlow's death was a random sectarian killing of an innocent Catholic by loyalist extremists.

A special Oireachtas sub-committee is to hold public hearings in mid-January on the report.

The Oireachtas justice committee, which finally published the document last night in Dublin, refused to comment on its content or preempt the findings of the sub-committee.

The report, released under full parliamentary privilege, states that Mr Ludlow was picked up in a car in May 1976 by four men: James Fitzsimmons, Richard Long, Samuel Carroll and Paul Hosking.

The report said: “Information obtained by the RUC from Hosking suggested that it was Carroll who shot Séamus Ludlow.

“The inquiry has not been in a position to test the veracity of this allegation.”

Mr Justice Barron said his job was made more difficult as documents were 'lost, destroyed or misplaced' and key witnesses were 'ill, dead or unable to remember important events'.

The report makes no clear findings about allegations by the Ludlow family of collusion in his murder by the RUC and the Gardaí.

Mr Ludlow’s nephew, Jimmy Sharkey, said he could only briefly consider the report but reiterated his family’s call for an independent public inquiry with powers to compel key witnesses.

Deputy Ó Caoláin said, “The report of Justice Barron is an indictment in particular of senior Garda management who prevented the investigation being pursued in 1979 even though they had the names of the four suspects, two of whom were members of the British Army’s Ulster Defence Regiment. The Report’s conclusion that the decision not to pursue this was taken by Deputy Commissioner Laurence Wren, possibly in consultation with senior officials of the Department of Justice, raises very serious questions.

“Once again, as in the case of his Dublin-Monaghan bombings investigation, the work of Justice Henry Barron has been hampered by lack of co-operation from the British authorities. He has concluded that he finds it hard to accept that requested documentation does not exist.

“The Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, at his next meeting with Tony Blair, must insist on full co-operation from the British authorities with the forthcoming hearings of the Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women’s Rights on this latest Barron Report. This must include making available witnesses and documentation.”

The report of the Independent Commission of Inquiry into the murder of Séamus Ludlow in 1976 can be viewed at: http://www.oireachtas.ie/documents/committees29thdail/committeereports2005/Ludlow-Murder.pdf

 

 

Ludlow Family Demand Apology from Gardaí
TOM News 04/11/05

The family of Séamus Ludlow today demanded an apology from the Gardaí over the investigation into their brother’s death in 1976.

Justice Henry Barron found in his report that the Dundalk forestry worker was the victim of a random sectarian killing by loyalist extremists.

But his brother, Kevin Ludlow, said the family would be seeking an apology from the Gardaí, who gave them the impression that their brother had been killed by the IRA.

“We were treated as dirt by the guards. I know that the ordinary guards on the street had to take orders from higher up and only did what they were told but the first inquest was a shambles anyway.”

He said the family still wanted an independent public inquiry.

“There’s still a lot of questions to be answered. The big question is why was so much covered up? Why were we told lies for 30 years?”

Séamus Ludlow was abducted in Dundalk in May 1976 while returning home from a pub and was found later dumped in a ditch near his home with three gunshot wounds to the chest.

The Barron report, released under full parliamentary privilege, praised the Gardaí for carrying out a diligent and competent investigation in the face of unreliable intelligence information.

But Justice Barron asked why details of the four suspects, provided by the RUC in 1979, were never pursued.

He said the investigating officer, Det Supt Dan Murphy, may have abandoned plans to interview the suspects because they were outside the jurisdiction.

At the second inquest earlier this year into Mr Ludlow’s murder, senior gardaí gave evidence that they knew who the killers were but were stopped by Garda Headquarters from pursuing them.

Mr Ludlow told RTÉ radio that he believed the family would never get justice.

“They (the murderers) could have been brought to justice 18 months after the murder and they'd have done their time and it’d be all over.”

He said the garda investigation had caused division in his family.

“The Gardaí did try to split up the family, and in a certain extent, they did do that. Thank God, everything is all right now. There’s no split in the family and we’re all coming together.”

The Barron report states that Mr Ludlow was picked up in a car in May 1976 by four men: James Fitzsimmons, Richard Long, Samuel Carroll and Paul Hosking.

It said: “Information obtained by the RUC from Hosking suggested that it was Carroll who shot Séamus Ludlow. The inquiry has not been in a position to test the veracity of this allegation.”

The Garda Commissioner, Noel Conroy, is currently examining the Barron report.

In a statement, he said the Gardaí acknowledged that there were issues in the original investigation carried out some 30 years ago.

“In recent years, An Garda Síochana has taken whatever actions were available to right the situation and in this regard co-operated fully with the Barron and other enquiries and will continue to do so.”

In his report, Judge Barron said it was most probable the decision not to pursue the suspects was made by then Deputy Commissioner Laurence Wren, after consulting other senior gardaí and possibly senior Justice Department officials.

 

 

Cover-up at ‘cabinet level’
Daily Ireland 25/01/06

Irish cabinet ministers may have known of a Garda plot to cover up the murder of a Co Louth man by loyalists 30 years ago, his nephew said last night.

Michael Donegan was speaking after appearing before an Oireachtas subcommittee sitting to consider the Barron report on the murder of Séamus Ludlow.

The 47-year-old was murdered on May 2, 1976, by a Red Hand Commando gang.

The Garda immediately blamed the murder on the IRA despite suspecting it to be the work of loyalists. In 1979, the RUC told gardaí that loyalists were responsible, giving them the names of the four men involved in the killing. However, this information was not pursued at the time and withheld from the Ludlow family until the mid-1990s.

When the Ludlows learned of the true nature of their relative’s death they pressurised the Irish government into commissioning Judge Henry Barron’s report into the murder.

Published in November it was highly critical of the Garda investigation, but stopped short of recommending a full public inquiry.

Appearing before the Oireachtas subcommittee yesterday, Michael Donegan repeated his calls for an inquiry into the murder. He also accused senior officials in the Garda and government of covering up details of the murder.

He said: “The cover up certainly extended to the top levels of the Garda and Department of Justice, and maybe even the Irish cabinet.

“The only way to get to the truth is through a public inquiry. The Oireachtas subcommittee doesn’t have the power to call witnesses or demand documents. Because of this, it is flawed.”

Mr Donegan said at this stage his family are not “particularly interested” in tracking down the loyalist gang who murdered his uncle.

“We are more interested in finding out why the state let us down, why they let our uncle Séamus down,” added Mr Donegan.

Earlier, family solicitor James McGuill said: “This has been an appalling three decades of experience of how an ordinary law-abiding family found themselves in a set of completely life-changing circumstances which was compounded by the state authorities they had to deal with.”

The Oireachtas subcommittee will deliver its findings on the Barron report on March 31.

In his investigation, Judge Barron said the Garda failed to pursue those responsible fearing that the IRA might attack police in the South for co-operating with the RUC in the North. He also stated that any such co-operation with the RUC might be perceived as acceding sovereignty to the British government.

However, these findings failed to impress the Ludlow family, who insist it was more convenient for the Garda to blame the killing on the IRA.

 

 

Former Fine Gael TD finally admits he was wrong on Ludlow killing
TOM News 31/01/06

Sinn Féin TD for Louth, Arthur Morgan has welcomed the fact that former Louth Fine Gael TD, Brendan McGahon has finally admitted that he was wrong to blame the IRA for the killing of Seamus Ludlow at the time and has now accepted that loyalists were responsible. Deputy Morgan was responding to McGahon’s appearance at the sub-committee on the Barron Report in Leinster House today.

However, Deputy Morgan didn’t accept the former deputy's partial amnesia in relation where he got his original information. Deputy Morgan also described as “incredible” comments made by McGahon that loyalists couldn’t have been suspected of the killing because he said they hadn’t been active in the area.

Deputy Morgan said, “While I would like to welcome the fact that former Fine Gael TD Brendan McGahon had finally admitted that he was wrong to blame the IRA for the killing of Seamus Ludlow by loyalists I find it hard to believe that he can’t remember what member of the Gardai gave him the information.

“More disturbing however was Brendan McGahon's suggestion at today’s meeting that loyalists couldn’t have been suspected of the killing at the time because he says they weren’t active in the area at the time. This is an incredible statement given the fact that loyalists had been involved in the bombing of Dundalk in December 1975, Castleblayney in March 1976 and in other bombings in Counties Monaghan and Cavan in the preceding years. The reality is that Brendan McGahon tried to use the killing of Seamus Ludlow to advance his own particular anti-republican agenda regardless of the hurt and pain it caused the Ludlow family.”

 

 

McDowell apologises to Ludlow family
TOM News 08/02/06

Minister for Justice Michael McDowell has apologised to the family of County Louth man Séamus Ludlow for their treatment by organs of the State.

The forty-seven-year-old Dundalk man was shot dead by loyalist paramilitaries on 2nd May 1976 while walking home from a pub in his home town.

Mr McDowell was speaking to an Oireachtas justice sub-committee which is examining the Barron Report into the murder of Mr Ludlow.

A report by Justice Henry Barron severely criticised the garda investigation of the case, particularly the failure to follow up on information about the main suspects that was handed over by the RUC.

The RUC told the gardaí in 1979 that it believed four named loyalists were involved in the murder but this information was not pursued by the gardaí.

Mr McDowell said it was "a matter of profound regret" that the gardaí failed to conduct a proper investigation.

 

 

New evidence in Ludlow case demands public inquiry
TOM News 08/02/06

Sinn Féin leader in the Dáil, Caoimhghin Ó Caoláin TD, has called for the immediate setting up of a public inquiry in to the 1976 murder of County Louth man Séamus Ludlow.

Deputy Ó Caoláin made his call after a statement, issued on behalf of a third party from the Six Counties, was read out at the Committee dealing with the Barron Report and the murder of Mr Ludlow. This statement indicated that new information would be made available if such an inquiry was set up.

Deputy Ó Caoláin said, “This afternoon's statement read out on behalf of an as yet anonymous third party, in which they offered to provide information on the Ludlow case if an independent public inquiry was set up is a welcome development.

“The campaign of the Ludlow family for truth and justice in relation to the murder of Séamus demands that the Government leaves no stone unturned in that search.

“I call on the Government to immediately set up an independent public inquiry as the prospect of substantive and crucial new information being made available in relation to this case must not be lost.”

 

 

Journalist claims gardaí may have protected Ludlow's killers
IOL 08/02/06

Gardaí may have covered-up the murder of a Dundalk forestry worker 30 years ago because of his killers’ links with British military intelligence, an Oireachtas committee heard today.

Seamus Ludlow, 47, was shot dead by gunmen while returning home from a pub in Dundalk on May 2 1976.

The former Sunday Tribune journalist Ed Moloney said questions had to be asked about why gardaí wrongly told the Ludlow family that he had been shot by the IRA for being an informer.

He said it had been obvious from the start that Ludlow, an innocent man, bore none of the hallmarks of someone who was killed for being an informer.

His body was not bound and gagged, he had not been interrogated for days beforehand and the IRA did not publicly name him as an informer, as was its general practice at the time.

“Gardaí smeared the Ludlow family in a shameful and disgustingly callous fashion,” said Mr Moloney.

Mr Moloney said there might have been collusion between the Gardaí and British military intelligence to cover up the murder but said only a public inquiry could establish the truth.

But he said the Garda allegation that Mr Ludlow was an IRA informer had caused divisions in the Ludlow family which lasted for two decades, as they rowed over the cause of his death, and prevented them from mounting a cohesive campaign for the truth.

Mr Moloney, who covered the North for the Sunday Tribune from 1978 until 2002, flew from his home in New York to appear before the Oireachtas Committee on Justice.

He raised a series of questions about links between the Gardaí and British military intelligence at the time of Mr Ludlow’s death.

“There is no doubt the British have over the years attempted to place agents in the Gardaí,” he said.

“There’s a lot of smoke and I don’t know whether there’s a fire, but there’s certainly smoke.”

In a wide-ranging presentation, he was warned several times by the committee chairman Fianna Fáil TD Sean Ardagh not to use the names of people implicated in murders and spying.

Mr Moloney said one of the four loyalists implicated in the killing of Seamus Ludlow, who he referred as number three, was a member of the Red Hand Commando and had been described as a psychopath with a fearsome and bloody reputation.

“Number three is living in England since the 1980s. I was told by UVF sources that he had departed under a cloud and when I asked if he was an informer, I was told it was reasonable to assume that he was.”

Mr Moloney said there were other cases where British intelligence had allowed an innocent person to be killed despite being warned by their informers. He referred to the killing of Belfast solicitor Pat Finucane in 1989 and the shooting of Francisco Notarantonio in 1987.

He described how a member of the Ludlow family living in South Armagh had been arrested in the wake of the murder and questioned about the progress of the Garda investigation.

“Why were the British army so interested in the Ludlow family case that they dispatched soldiers and helicopters? My allegation is that the British army wanted to know if one of their agents was in trouble.”

He said that a full public inquiry into the murder of Seamus Ludlow would deal with the great unanswered question: was one of the killers a British informer and what did the gardaí and the State know about it?

“There is an elephant in the room and everyone is pretending it is not there.”

 

 

Ludlow family renew call for full probe
Daily Ireland 30/03/06

The family of a Dundalk man murdered by loyalists 30 years ago have repeated calls for a full public inquiry into his death.

Relatives of Séamus Ludlow said the Irish government’s refusal to grant their request proved that ministers were still trying to cover up the gardaí’s failure to fully investigate the murder.

Mr Ludlow was murdered by a loyalist gang outside Dundalk, Co Louth, in 1976. For two decades, detectives blamed the IRA on the killing, despite being told by the RUC in 1979 that four loyalists from north Down were responsible. Gardaí failed to pursue these suspects, ignoring RUC offers to visit the North to interview the men.

The Independent Commission of Inquiry, set up last year to probe the original Garda investigation, published its final report on the killing yesterday.

It made 24 recommendations and criticised gardaí for the manner in which they treated the Ludlow family, for not investigating the collusion aspects to the murder and for not making any inquiries in the North.

The report also recommended that a commission of inquiry be set up to investigate the killing. It said a team of gardaí should be appointed to look at reopening the case.

Mr Ludlow’s nephew Jimmy Sharkey broadly welcomed the contents of the report but said he was disappointed that it had stopped short of recommending a full public inquiry.

“I want the Taoiseach to admit that there was a policy in place at the time not to pursue the killers of my uncle.

“The government officials who oversaw this policy are still alive, perhaps even still working for the Department of Justice, and, because of this, the Taoiseach is ignoring our calls for a public inquiry,” he said.

Mr Sharkey said his family had reluctantly supported the Independent Commission of Inquiry.

“We didn’t want this. It wasn’t what we asked for. The committee was only a talking shop. It had no power,” he said.

“The bottom line is that the state is still protecting the people it was protecting back in the 1970s.

“But the game doesn’t stop here. My family haven’t been defeated. It is only half-time as far as I am concerned.”

Fianna Fáil senator Jim Walsh, who sat on the Oireachtas subcommittee on the Barron report on the murder of Séamus Ludlow, said there were clear failings in the original Garda investigation.

However, he refused to back the Ludlow family’s calls for a full public inquiry.

“I’m happy enough with the findings of the commission, although there were elements to it that, from a family point of view, were unsatisfactory,” he said.

 

 

Gardaí to reopen probe into Ludlow murder
IOL 30/03/06

A senior garda officer was today appointed to re-examine the investigation into the murder of a Dundalk forestry worker 30 years ago.

Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy made the decision after the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice criticised the original inquiry into the death of Seamus Ludlow in a report yesterday.

The committee recommended a commission of inquiry be set up after it emerged the four suspects in the 1976 loyalist paramilitary murder identified by the Royal Ulster Constabulary were never questioned by gardaí.

A garda spokesman said the senior officer would re-examine all investigation files relating to the case and re-investigate where appropriate all avenues of enquiry in a bid to bring those responsible to justice.

“This investigation will necessitate working closely with officers of the Police Service of Northern Ireland,” he said.

“The Garda officer concerned will report to Assistant Commissioner, National Support Services, who will advise on the appropriate direction of the investigation.”

The Joint Committee on Justice called for a new investigation and said the Ludlow family were treated in a very unsatisfactory manner by the gardai in the aftermath of the murder.

“The gardai do not seem seem to have made any inquiries in Northern Ireland in 1976 or seriously considered the possibility of collusion,” its report found.

Committee chairman Sean Ardagh acknowledged it had not met the family’s demands for a public inquiry but said it felt a commission of investigation was the best way of getting information speedily.

In a statement, the Ludlow family said they were pleased with the committee’s conclusion that they had been treated in an appalling manner but insisted a public inquiry was the only way to get to the truth.

The committee held hearings in January and February into Judge Henry Barron’s report into the Ludlow murder.

It found that despite submissions from gardai who stated that they could not travel across the border to interview suspects, interviews had been conducted in Northern Ireland by members of the force on at least three occasions.

Judge Barron found Mr Ludlow, an unmarried forestry worker, had been the victim of a random sectarian killing and that there was absolutely no evidence to suggest he had any republican connections.

After his death, members of the Gardaí wrongly told the family that he had been shot by the IRA as an informer and this led to deep divisions which lasted for two decades.

They also failed to give them adequate notice about the inquest into his death and no member of the family was present.

The committee expressed the gravest concerns about the role collusion played in the murder of Seamus Ludlow and said it was undisputed that two of the suspects were members of the Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR).

The proposed commission of investigation will have the power to compel the attendance of witnesses and to order the discovery of documents, but it will be held in private.

Michael Donegan, the nephew of Seamus Ludlow, said the family would continue their campaign for a public inquiry.

The four loyalists suspected of murdering Seamus Ludlow were arrested in Northern Ireland in 1999 but were released without charge on the advice of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Both the Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy and Justice Minister Michael McDowell have apologised to the Ludlow family for the way they were treated and the inadequate Garda investigation.