Man faces Omagh murder charges

Deric Henderson

The office of the Director of Public Prosecutions in Belfast has given police the go-ahead after a mammoth probe which involved a review of all the forensic evidence by an international panel of scientists.

The Press Association reported last night that papers outlining details of the charges would be served on the south Armagh man later this month.

It will be the biggest mass murder trial in Irish legal history.

The man is already in custody on a series of terrorist charges and membership of the Real IRA, the group which bombed Omagh in August 1998.

Apart from the 29 killed in the no-warning blast, including a woman pregnant with twins, more than 300 were injured in the worst single terrorist outrage in the North.

The man, who is not being named for legal reasons, will also face charges relating to possession of explosives, and timer units allegedly linked to several mortar, car and roadside bombs found in the months before Omagh.