A Very British Jihad by Larkin Paul

Author:Larkin, Paul [Larkin, Paul]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Beyond The Pale
Published: 2004-02-29T16:00:00+00:00

The exchange then continues, with Gallagher pursuing the question of how Alice could have lifted Beattie’s gun given that he was in the car and that it was lying by the hand brake.

J.G. I suggest to you that you let the girl handle your firearm.

D.B. Definitely not.

J.G. Because you knew her.

D.B. I did not know her.

J.G. You went home and went out around midnight by arrangement to meet her.

D.B. That is not true.

It is not just David Beattie that is in the dock here, the RUC as a whole has questions to answer. What are we to make of the fact that the RUC gave a completely erroneous version of events before something like the truth emerged at the inquest? Is it the case that it was hoped that time could be bought by concocting the story about Beattie not being in the car when the shot was fired? There is also the fact that police officers are very often able to get petrol or diesel for their police issue cars from major police and army barracks or stations. This arrangement exists in order to avoid the security risk of calling to an outside garage. Despite this, Beattie has claimed that he withdrew £10.00 from a bank link for the purpose of purchasing petrol.

Only a full public inquiry with powers of subpoena could get the RUC to explain not only the differing versions of events in the early hours of the 6th of July 1991 but also its subsequent inadequate investigation of those same events. It appears to me that evidence pertaining to Alice’s death was not subsequently secured properly by other officers so that the RUC could establish beyond doubt the veracity of Beattie’s account to his senior officers.

Constable McAfee, who was the first officer to inspect Beattie’s car, reports that the gun ‘was lying between the front seats’. Beattie’s gun, however, then seems to have been moved from where it lay and was tidily placed between the driver’s seat and the hand brake. This is clearly shown in the pictures taken by forensic scientists which Spotlight was able to obtain. It is possible that this action removed any fingerprint evidence from the weapon as fingerprint officer Anne Mary Greer has reported that she ‘detected no usable imprints’either on the Ruger revolver or its holster. Also, in any major incident like this where a civilian driver is the ‘suspect’, the RUC would invariably breathalyse that person. His pockets would also be emptied in order to verify any claimed money transactions and he/she would be placed in a secure environment to avoid contamination of evidence.

Cross match forensic evidence would also be taken for comparison between the deceased’s hair and that of the driver and any other person not present at the scene. I can find no evidence from reading the papers at the inquest that this is what happened. It is true that the car was taken away to be photographed but it was never, as it should have been, retained with a view to obtaining further evidence.

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