Mother’s plea to catch Pc killers
The grieving mother of murdered Constable Ronan Kerr has pleaded to the community to stand up and be counted so her son “didn’t die in vain.”
The 25-year-old new recruit was killed in an under-car bomb outside his Omagh home on Saturday afternoon.
He was on his way to work when the booby-trap device exploded.
Nuala Kerr paid a “special tribute” to her late son, flanked by Ronan’s two brothers – Cathair and Aaron – and sister Dairine, in a statement to UTV.
She said: “He had all the attributes of a great police officer – fair, empathetic, intelligent, humorous, a great communicator and loyal to all who knew him. And he just loved his work.”
Nuala urged young Catholic recruits not to be deterred by what she called “this callous crime.”
“It’s a sad day for our community. Ronan was a valued member and he had so much to offer. This is at a time when we are striving for a neutral police force for the good of our country and I urge all Catholic members not to be deterred by this.”
She appealed to the public for information about the murder, “no matter how small”.
“Would you please come forward and do the right thing so that justice can be done”, she pleaded.
“We all need to stand up and be counted and to strive for equality. We don’t want to go back into the dark days again of fear and terror. We were so proud of Ronan and all that he stood for. Don’t let his death be in vain.”
Hours after the murder, Ronan’s brother, Cathair, wrote on Twitter: “Ronan Kerr – Rest in Peace my beloved brother. The best brother anyone could wish for. I hope dad is there to meet you at heavens gates :(”
Ronan’s father Brian died some time ago.
The PSNI want to speak to anyone with information, or anyone who spoke to Ronan either on Friday or Saturday, especially if he was in his car, a black Ford Mondeo, registration number PNZ 1114.
“There are people living in this community who have information which is absolutely vital to this investigation”, a police spokesman said.
“We understand there will be some people who might be scared and maybe do not want to talk to police. You can give information anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
