Court papers obtained by this newspaper show loyalist had military ammunition and repeatedly lied – yet the UVF commander wasn’t charged with terrorist offences and received a derisory sentence
Sam McBride
Today at 07:22
There’s a question that has long enraged and dismayed law-abiding citizens: why do the police almost never arrest known paramilitary commanders?
Buried in court bundles obtained by the Belfast Telegraph is a disturbing answer.
On Tuesday, a judge jailed a man who exemplifies the peace process’s moral perils.
Winston Irvine was able to talk a good game while operating at the top of the UVF.
Feted by police commanders, unionist and nationalist politicians, and by the British and Irish Governments, he took Irish taxpayers’ money but was then arrested by police investigating a hoax bomb attack on the then Irish foreign minister.
He lied and lied. Yet, when caught, he was able to rely on some of Northern Ireland’s most respected and respectable figures writing in praise of him.
Irvine’s sentence is derisory. He’ll be out of jail next year.
After sentencing, this newspaper applied to the judge for court papers. Judge Gordon Kerr KC immediately agreed to release all the material.
It shows what some of Irvine’s backers tried to keep hidden. Their names read like a who’s who of senior figures from polite society.
Before considering them, it’s important to understand what Irvine did.
When stopped by police in July 2022, Irvine claimed not to know what was in a Sainsbury’s bag in his boot.
Inside the bag was a Calvin Klein holdall containing two revolvers, an airgun replica of a Heckler & Koch submachinegun, several magazines, 9mm ammunition and assorted blank cartridges.
Some of the weapons were modified and some of the ammunition magazines were found by an expert to be “consistent with British military use and in good condition”.
When Irvine’s Ballysillan Road home was searched, police found a UVF pendant on a gold chain, a black balaclava, a UVF framed photo and, intriguingly, digital recording devices.
On the same day the 49-year-old was arrested, police also lifted Larne man Robin Workman (54) who they had observed handing over the bag.
When Workman’s home was searched, police found rifle and pistol publications, a UVF magazine, an air rifle, a cleaning kit for a Glock handgun, two pistol holsters, an armband stamped ‘UVF East Antrim’, two shotgun cartridge belts, a shotgun and a UVF jumper.
Police interviewed Irvine five times. He refused to speak beyond “denying any knowledge of the items in the bag and that forensic evidence will show this”.
In a prepared statement, he boasted that he’d “developed a reputation as a trusted interlocutor” and was a “trusted peace-building advocate” who’d worked with the PSNI.
He claimed to be working on decommissioning weapons, saying that “as part of this work, I regularly meet with individuals and relay messages or collect messages and bring them to third parties”.
He added: “I clearly had no intention of engaging in criminal activity of any kind… I had no knowledge or insight as to what was in the bag.”
Ciaran Murphy KC for the prosecution said “this now is clearly established as a lying account to mislead the police”.
When charged, Irvine replied “not guilty”.
Workman denied having ever met or phoned Irvine in his life. CCTV and phone evidence proved both men were lying.
When Irvine’s phone was examined, it held photos of men in balaclavas with rifles and “images indicating support of the UVF”.
Memory sticks seized from Irvine’s home contained images of UVF pins, rings, what appeared to be a bullet, murals supporting the UVF, a handgun and a UVF picture on a wall.
Demonstrably, he was up to his neck in the UVF.
Workman’s phone similarly proved him a liar. He had saved Irvine’s number into his mobile in 2019 under the name “Winky Irvine” and made a series of calls to him. A second contact was called “winky”, perhaps relating to another Irvine handset.
Workman’s lawyer claimed that “on prior occasion he has been requested to act as a messenger in his role as someone who has assisted in making efforts on behalf of his community to prevent or diffuse problematic situations”.
This sums up the perversity of how Northern Ireland functions. People caught with terrorist guns, ammunition and paraphernalia claim to be involved in eradicating terrorism.
Workman said he guessed the guns were to be decommissioned. But he’d lied so much that he was tying himself up in knots. Just a few sentences later, his barrister said that when Workman saw Irvine, “he was well known to him”, even though his client had told the police he’d never met Irvine.
Workman’s lawyer, Michael Borelli KC, said the former UDR member “worked tirelessly” to establish Ace Developments, a building company.
The prosecution argued there were five aggravating factors, including Irvine’s extensive criminal record. By 2022, he had 18 criminal convictions, including rioting and assaulting a police officer. His most recent offence was in 2009.
But the prosecution barrister said they “are not in a position to point to evidence of any specific act of terrorism relating to the offences in his case”.
Irvine was represented by Brenda Campbell KC and Joe Brolly. At a hearing in July 2022, Brolly referred to “very sensitive material”. saying “a witness has attended today who had asked to give evidence anonymously to the court”.
He claimed: “There is going to be a publication once Mr Irvine is released — that was delayed — which might have fundamental importance in our society as a whole.”
At a hearing last year, Brolly said there may be “significant disclosure” before the trial. There wasn’t. Instead, a few months later, both defendants suddenly pleaded guilty.
Despite Irvine’s extensive criminality, his defence team argued that his “character” should be a mitigating factor, along with his “wider positive impact on his local community”.
The lawyers told the judge that the references demonstrated he “has a unique position within the loyalist community and is held in very high regard by a wide cross section of our society”.
They went on to state that Irvine “is a trusted interlocutor who has directly engaged with loyalist paramilitaries”, omitting to mention that this is because he is a paramilitary leader.
The submission claimed he was “currently centrally involved in intensive talks whose aim is the permanent disbandment of all of the loyalist paramilitary groups”, describing him as “an exceptional individual”.
They said the criminal was “the sole breadwinner and primary carer for his wife and four children” and went on to claim: “There is no terrorist connection in this case.”
Judge Kerr said he considered Irvine’s references when deciding that for “exceptional” reasons he shouldn’t get the minimum five-year sentence.
David Campbell of the Loyalist Communities Council (LCC) wrote “in strict confidence” and “privately” to tell the judge that Irvine was key to loyalist decommissioning and resolving the Ardoyne parade dispute.
He said Irvine helped stop violence over the Irish Sea border, putting “his own life and safety on the line”.
Campbell said there was “barely a week” where the LCC wasn’t communicating with Downing Street and senior Government advisers, and sometimes Irish ministers, with Irvine “a key figure”.
He added: “I can in no way condone or excuse his serious misjudgement, but I am frankly astonished given the years of genuine work for peace that he has engaged in and that I have witnessed. I do not believe that he had any malicious intent, and I do not believe it is in the public interest to place him in prison.”
Former Policing Board vice chair Debbie Watters said she had “worked closely” with Irvine for 15 years, finding him “a dedicated supporter of the peace process”. She said Irvine’s wife, Roberta, “relies heavily” on him.
Methodist minister the Rev Gary Mason said he’d known Irvine for 15 years and he’d “taken risks for the securing and preservation of peace”.
He said if Irvine was jailed it could be “devastating” for his family.
The judge was given a statement by Rev Harold Good and Jim Roddy who said that “in light of our roles, and because of threats that have been issued in the past, we would ask the court to grant us anonymity”. The judge declined to do so.
The men said they had “worked very closely” with Irvine for the last six years “on problems relating to intercommunal disputes and issues relating to the legacy of the conflict” and “in our work we have always found Winston to be honest [and] trustworthy”.
They added: “Our engagement over the past six years has been continual and we would have cooperated regularly and without break with each other, during this period.”
Several other letters were submitted when Irvine sought bail in 2022.
Paul Crawford, whose father was murdered by the UVF in 1974, said Irvine had worked with the UVF to secure information about the killing.
He came to see Irvine “as a genuine friend” and “a man of integrity” who “will pose no threat to anyone”.
Queen’s law professor Kieran McEvoy told the judge then that he’d been involved in “highly sensitive” work linked to the legacy of the Troubles which involved “private and public engagement with a diverse range of stakeholders”.
He said he’d been involved in the process with Crawford who believed Irvine “engaged at all times in good faith”, adding: “ I formed a similar impression.”
He also asked for the letter to be kept from the public. David Porter, then chief of staff to the Archbishop of Canterbury, said he’d witnessed Irvine’s “commitment to work for peace and stability” and to “promote a constructive future for loyalist communities”.
Former Church of Ireland primate Alan Harper said he’d known Irvine for seven years and he’d taken “very considerable risks”.
Harper said he wrote for “pastoral and humanitarian grounds”.
In a December 2021 handwritten letter given to the court, the then NIO Minister Conor Burns wrote to Irvine: “Please know that I am available to speak whenever it would be helpful.”
The letter predated Irvine’s arrest, but indicates his level of access.
Here was a UVF leader being told by a Government minister to ring him whenever he wanted.
Burns might claim ignorance of Irvine’s role, but the NIO knew. In 2013, Irvine had been named by BBC Spotlight as a UVF commander; he was repeatedly named in newspapers as a UVF figure.
Irvine told the court he’d been in talks with Secretary of State Julian Smith, was “informally appointed” to a ‘contact group’ set up by his successor Brandon Lewis, negotiated with the Irish Government about loyalist ceasefires, and had “a leading role in working with the PSNI, Sinn Fein and the loyalist community” to end rioting over the sea border.
Deputy Chief Constable Bobby Singleton told the court he worked with Irvine “in his role as a community worker” for a decade, but said they never discussed decommissioning.
Irvine “refused to provide any details” of who he claimed to be meeting when caught.
A letter from a local teacher said Irvine helped set up an important school scheme and Irvine’s wife’s GP confirmed issues relating to her, saying Irvine “has been a stable presence and a strong emotional support”, with the prospect of him being absent representing a “significant challenge for her”.
Conor McNeill, the managing director of CM Fit-Out Ltd, described Workman as a man of “exceptional leadership and management abilities” with “sound decision-making skills” and “an aptitude for resolving conflicts”.
Jonathan Hodge, who as a PUP press officer issued statements for Irvine, said Workman helped ensure a “relative lack of disorder” in Larne over the sea border. He said the man who lied to police was “honest and hardworking”.
Former PSNI officer Eric Bracewell said he’d met Workman while stationed in Larne and he was “a good cross-community worker” who during the Drumcree protests “negotiated with police” to resolve a blockage of the A8.
Although Workman continued to plead not guilty long after being caught, Bracewell said Workman contacted him “soon after” his arrest “expressing remorse and poor judgement on his own behalf”.
This episode is more embarrassing for the authorities than for the UVF. It exposes how they’ve been openly working with someone known to be a paramilitary commander. A decade ago, I watched a senior police officer negotiating with Irvine amid rioting at Ardoyne.
Already, senior figures are said to be quietly seeking to rehabilitate Irvine’s reputation, preparing the way for him to slot back into public life after jail.
By contrast, former UUP leader Doug Beattie is an exception, having written to the PPS requesting an appeal of the “bizarre” sentence for Irvine, who will be out in 15 months.
For all the talk, our society simply isn’t serious about eradicating paramilitarism. Even when caught red-handed, these people are so deeply embedded in Northern Ireland’s power structures that they can get away with a lighter sentence than postmasters wrongly convicted of fraud.
To treat leaders of paramilitaries who destroy lives through drugs, extortion and violence in this way is morally vomitous — and would never be tolerated if their victims were in middle-class areas.
by pickneyboy3000
7 comments
Didn’t Joe Brolly say he was a peacemaker or something?
Whatabouttery in 3,2,1….
But but , Bobby storeys funeral
Deputy Chief Constable Bobby Singleton told the court he worked with Irvine “in his role as a community worker” for a decade, but said they never discussed decommissioning.
So the PSNI never actually asking about decommissioning? Is that not crazy?
Until such times that loyalism is forced to stop active paramilitary groups, nothing will change
This is actually ridiculous. You think you’ve seen and heard it all. I don’t give a fuck about who provided references in one sense.
The facts and circumstances of the case speak volumes about whether this was terrorist related. I mean come on!
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