Bomb car disappears
POLICE have been left red faced after a key piece of evidence believed to be linked to the Newtownhamilton bomb disappeared.
The car thought to be used as a getaway car was found burnt out in Meigh on Thursday night.
However, unnamed individuals removed the car from the Ballintemple Road scene at about 7pm on Friday before police had a chance to examine it.
It was recovered by police 16 hours later in the Newry area on Saturday morning and it was confirmed yesterday (Monday) that forensic tests are ongoing on the vehicle.
POLICE justified the delay in responding to the abandoned vehicle by saying the car could have been a ‘lure’ to attack responding officers.
The incident bears the hallmarks of a similar case when a car, thought to be used by dissidents to flee Newry Courthouse after the car bomb in March, again disappeared. The burnt car vehicle lay on the roadside in Dromintee for two days before it went missing.
Police confirmed they are working to establish a link with the car to the Thursday’s bomb. The statement said concerns over a possible ambush meant “officers were unable to respond as fully or as quickly as they would have wished”.
It acknowledged the police operation was cautious given the severe threat levels: “Because the safety of officers and the public is a priority for the PSNI, some situations may have to be dealt with cautiously due to the significant threat from dissident republican criminals, who have shown their determination to kill officers. The public will understand that the primary target for dissident republicans is police officers.
“It is unfortunate these measures have to be considered but that is the reality of policing where a small minority of people are determined to bring us back to the dark days of the past.”
