Staff ‘terrified’ of intimidation in wake of bank raids

MANY bank staff held up in armed raids across Ireland are too terrified to take part in identity parades, union officials claimed yesterday.

They will not participate because of the fear of being targeted by suspects under police investigation.

Their fears were raised at a meeting in Belfast between senior civil servants at the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) and representatives of the Irish Bank Officials Association (IBOA).

It was the first time the sides met to discuss safety and security issues since the £26.5m (€38.7m) Northern Bank robbery before Christmas, when staff members Chris Ward and Kevin McMullan were kidnapped and their families held hostage.

Up to 30 staff who worked in the cash distribution centre which was raided were later transferred.

None of the men involved - Chief Constable Hugh Orde blamed the IRA - has been charged, and almost all of the stolen money is still missing.

Not only will some bank staff refuse to take part in ID parades, but others are discouraged from giving evidence, according to the finance union general secretary Larry Broderick, whose union represents 20,000 staff, 7,000 in the North.

A review of security within Northern Ireland banking, the impact raids have on staff, identity line-ups, giving testimonies in open court and personal safety were discussed.

Afterwards Mr Broderick said there was a tendency in the aftermath of robberies to focus on the amount stolen or the modus operandi of the perpetrators. But it should also be remembered staff go through traumatic experiences, with many unable to continue work, fearing for their safety.

He said: “In many cases following a robbery, staff are afraid to participate in identity parades because the suspected criminal can see and identify the witness. “Staff are further discouraged from testifying in court and fulfilling their civic duty because as a result of reportage of the case, where the individual is named, it makes them an easy target for possible intimidation by criminals.”

He said the association proposed a solution to the NIO, requesting the bank, and not officials, be identified following a raid. It was also suggested the media resist identifying victims.

Mr Broderick added: “The IBOA suggested at the meeting it would be helpful if the courts, police service and media could set parameters in such cases, whereby in future it is the bank as a corporate identity which is named and not the individual bank official.”