IRA man 'may have fired before gun jammed'

A former member of the Royal Navy who joined the IRA today conceded he could have fired a shot at the Army before his gun jammed on Bloody Sunday.

Reg Tester, who was the Official IRA’s quartermaster on January 30, 1972 when 13 civilians were shot dead in the Bogside area of Derry, said he attempted to fire an M1 Carbine rifle after hearing about the shootings.

The former paramilitary, who is originally from Nottinghamshire, told the inquiry into the events of Bloody Sunday sitting at the Guildhall in Derry: “I had taken a new weapon that I was unfamiliar with rather than an old one because the M1 had a higher rate of fire.

“However, the gun jammed and because I was unfamiliar with such a new weapon, I was unable to unjam it, so I returned to the car.”

But Counsel to the Inquiry Christopher Clarke QC pressed him about an interview he had conducted with three journalists in which he reportedly said he fired off a shot before the gun jammed.

The journalists’ notes said an Official IRA gunman fired one shot from an M1 Carbine at a Para standing beside an Army Pig near the Rossville Flats.

“That appears to be an account of the rifle jamming but jamming after you had in fact fired one shot; is that what happened?”

Mr Tester insisted his recollection was that the gun failed when he attempted to fire it.

Asked if it was possible his recollection could have been faulty, Mr Tester replied: “Quite possible.”

He told the Inquiry he had lost his cool after hearing about the shootings and attempted to fire at the Army.

As the IRA’s quartermaster, he was responsible for handing out the organisation’s scarce supply of weapons and explosives to volunteers.

He said a decision was taken not to engage with the Army on the day of the civil rights march.

“Prior to Bloody Sunday I had received an order from the Officer in Command of Derry to ensure all weapons belonging to the Official IRA were collected from the Bogside and taken to the Creggan.

“After retrieving all the weapons they were kept in the boot of my car and another car. I would not have travelled alone and there were at least two people in my car and possibly two or three people in the other car,” he added.

He said that on the morning of the march, there were two guns missing – a revolver kept by the IRA’s officer commanding and a sporting .303 rifle which was later used to fire at the Army.

Mr Clarke pointed out that a third weapon must have been issued to an Official IRA gunman, who fired at troops at Rossville Flats.

This individual is known to the Inquiry as “Father Daly’s gunman”.

Mr Tester said he had no knowledge at the time that this gun had been issued.

The barrister asked him: “How does it come about that a weapon under your overall responsibility is issued without your knowing that it has been issued or to whom it has been issued or from where it has been taken?”

He replied: “Unlike the opposition, the British Army, I do not have a nice quartermaster’s stores with weapons racks in it.”

The 67-year-old Englishman, who has lived in Derry for many years, told the Inquiry that the public release of his name had caused severe disruption to his personal life.

He said he had expected his former lawyers to apply for anonymity when taking the witness stand but they had failed to do so.

“My own personal safety is a matter of concern and I have lost friends because of the disclosure that I used to be in the Official IRA.

“Members of my family such as my brother found out my past history which I had never intended should happen.”