Omagh report: Ronnie Flanagan criticised

The Police Ombudsman’s report into the police handling of the Omagh bombing investigation has said that chief constable Ronnie Flanagan’s flawed judgement reduced the chances of the bombers ever being caught.

Nuala O’Loan’s report says: "The judgement and leadership of the chief constable and assistant chief constable has been seriously flawed.

"As a result of that, the chances of detaining and convicting the Omagh bombers has been significantly reduced. The victims, their families, the people of Omagh and officers of the RUC were let down by defective leadership, poor judgement and a lack of urgency."

Mr Flanagan and senior RUC officers were also criticised for being "defensive and at times unco-operative" with the inquiry into the handling of the Omagh investigation.

The report attacks the role of the much-maligned Special Branch, criticising them for failing to pass on information warning of an attack on Omagh on August 15th, 1998 - the day of the bombing.

It also says officers in charge of the inquiry were guilty of "failed leadership" and did not respond suitably to an incident which claimed 29 lives.

The report confirms that the RUC received two prior warnings of an attack on Omagh. The first was on August 24, 11 days before the bombing.

An anonymous caller warned that a number of individuals were planning an attack on police in Omagh on August 15 with AK-47s and rocket launchers.

However, Special Branch dismissed the warning, saying those named by the caller were "only smugglers".

No information about this warning was passed on to the sub-divisional commander - a decision Ms O’Loan said she believes contravened the RUC Force Order.

Ms O’Loan also noted that Mr Flanagan, the chief constable, told her team that he was satisfied the anonymous caller’s information was not relevant to the bomb.

The second advance warning came from an RUC informer using the pseudonym Kevin Fulton, who told his handler in the Criminal Investigation Department on August 12 that dissident republicans were planning to "move something north over the next few days", but no specific target was mentioned.

This information was passed on to the Special Branch.

Mr Flanagan, the Special Branch and the CID have all claimed Kevin Fulton was an unreliable source, but the Ombudsman’s report said there was no evidence to support this assertion.

It concludes that the RUC may not have been able to prevent the Omagh attack, but if action was taken, it could have deterred the bombers.

Ms O’Loan’s report recommends that a team of police officers independent of the North’s new police service be appointed to conduct a full inquiry into how the RUC handled the Omagh investigation.

She also calls for a review of the role of the Special Branch to ensure that information it receives is passed on to other sections of the police service.