DNA evidence links man to police murders, court told

A man accused of the "callous and cowardly" murder of three police officers in 1982 could be linked to the case by DNA evidence, a court has heard.

Martin McCauley, with an address in Naas in County Kildare, appeared before Craigavon Magistrates' Court on Thursday after being extradited from the Republic of Ireland.

The court heard "modern era" forensics could match the 62-year-old's DNA to that identified on cigarette butts found at the scene at the time of the killings.

Mr McCauley is to stand trial for the murder of the three Royal Ulster Constabulary officers in an explosion at Kinnego Embankment near Lurgan in County Armagh in October 1982.

The officers were Sgt Sean Quinn, and constables Allan McCloy and Paul Hamilton.

They were on duty when the car they were travelling in drove over a bomb that had been hidden in the road and was detonated by remote control.

The IRA claimed responsibility for the attack.

All three officers were in an unmarked police car and the bomb was detonated remotely by a command wire.

Two people suspected of involvement at the time were shot dead two weeks later by the RUC.

Mr McCauley, who is originally from County Armagh, has lived south of the border since the late 1990s.

He was returned on Thursday morning to Northern Ireland, where he appeared before court and was subsequently granted bail.

Mr McCauley is one of the so-called Colombia Three.

He was arrested alongside two others in Colombia in 2001 and was accused of the IRA training of rebel FARC guerrilla forces.

They were initially cleared of the charge, only to be convicted on appeal and sentenced to 17 years in jail.

But the three men avoided imprisonment by fleeing Colombia in 2004. They turned up in the Republic of Ireland a year later.

A PSNI detective inspector told the court that Mr McCauley's case in Colombia and the fact he fled that country were grounds to suggest he could travel the world without a passport.

They told the court that they objected to granting bail because there was a risk of flight, a risk of further offences and a risk of interfering with witnesses.

They said the 1982 murder of three RUC officers while on duty had been "callous and cowardly", and that they were satisfied they could connect the accused to the case because "a modern era forensic examination of DNA matching the defendant's had been detected on cigarette butts smoked and deposited at the scene".

Granting bail, the judge said he did not believe the risks set out by the PSNI and prosecution had been met.

Mr McCauley's lawyer told the court that his client had strong family ties to his home in County Kildare, including three vulnerable grandchildren to whom he was "pivotal" in providing care.

The lawyer said Mr McCauley was also prepared to sign in with his local gardai every day, and that he was also prepared to offer a cash surety to abide by the terms of his bail.

Lawyers for Mr McCauley have previously said he denies the charges against him.

The case was adjourned until 26 February.