Bomb was planned for town

A road junction on the outskirts of Lurgan was to be used for a mortar attack on security forces, it has emerged.
Damien Duffy. INLM28-007Damien Duffy. INLM28-007
Damien Duffy. INLM28-007

The details emerged during a bail application at Belfast High Court for one of three men accused of conspiracy to murder and cause an explosion.

43-year-old Damien Duffy, of Campbell Walk, Lurgan, is also charged with collecting information likely to be of use to terrorists.

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The bail hearing was told suspects allegedly involved in the murder plot drove past one target’s home more than 50 times in eight days.

Mr Duffy was arrested in May last year, following a long surveillance investigation.

The alleged offences, stretching back to November 2009, relate to PSNI and prison officers’ movements in the Lurgan and Craigavon areas, their addresses and routes they took to and from work.

Counsel for the prosecution claimed audio recordings showed the Kilmore Road and Cottage Road junction was to be used for a mortar bomb attack on security forces.

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Alleged discussions between the suspects included references to lines of sight, getting angles right and breaking cover. The barrister also claimed those involved in the plot were targeting and preparing to attack two identified prison officers.

It was accepted in court that forensic analysis of the audio recordings was unable to attribute any of the remarks to Mr Duffy. However, accounts from independent witnesses put him in the car used during the alleged offences, it was claimed.

A defence barrister argued Mr Duffy should be released due to the “paucity” of evidence and delays in processing the case.

The judge refused bail saying: “In cases of terrorism the offence is driven by a warped political ideology. Therefore there is a significantly higher risk of further offences.”

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