Minister pledges to strip IRA of illegal wealth

Anti-racketeers involved in a major new offensive on suspected IRA assets in Britain are focused on stripping paramilitaries of all illegal wealth, the Irish Justice Minister pledged today.

The Assets Recovery Agency (ARA) is examining 250 properties owned by two Manchester-based businessmen and valued at £30m (€44m).

The probe is believed to be linked to Tom “Slab” Murphy, the alleged chief of staff of the IRA.

As Sinn Féin leaders Gerry Adams and Martin McGuinness prepared for Downing Street talks with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, police in Greater Manchester also raided at least two business premises.

Private homes and addresses owned by property managed companies were all targeted after search and seizure warrants and a disclosure order were granted at the High Court in London, ARA said.

Documents were seized during the raids, which came just 10 days after decommissioning chief General John de Chastelain declared all IRA weapons had been put beyond use.

But Justice Minister Michael McDowell, an outspoken critic of the Provisionals, insisted the authorities on both sides of the border were not prepared to go soft on republican crime of any kind.

He said: “An Garda Siochana and the PSNI (Police Service of Northern Ireland) and the Criminal Assets Bureau and the ARA are co-operating in every possible way to ensure that on this island those who have ontrol of the proceeds of crime are deprived of those proceeds.

“It’s not simply what happens in this island. It’s people who transfer assets abroad to be outside the reach of the long arm of the law.”

Mr McDowell said he knew the operation was at an early stage and did not want to prejudge its outcome.

But he insisted London and Dublin would come down hard on the Provos if they break the law.

“I do say that anyone who believes that political development will somehow airbrush out the whole question of the proceeds of criminality and the massive portfolio of assets which many people involved in Paramilitarism have and intend to use to pervert the democratic process in this state, they should think twice ow because those assets should not be written off. On the contrary, they are being sought and tracked down,” he said.

Mr McDowell said there was the closest co-operation between the Criminal Assets Bureau and its counterpart the ARA.

“There is a joint determination to ensure that the border is not something behind which criminals can hide or which they can use to their advantage by concealing assets abroad.”

The operation, which will overshadow Mr Blair’s separate meetings with both Sinn Féin and Democratic Unionist leader Ian Paisley, caused alarm in Belfast.

Danny Kennedy, a senior Ulster Unionist representative, warned it could cause major damage to a new push to restore power-sharing at Stormont.

The Newry and Armagh MLA said: “This is a very disturbing development indeed.

“If, after investigation by the ARA, the properties turn out to be linked to the IRA this will have very serious consequences for the political process in Northern Ireland.

“The extent of the IRA’s vast criminal empire was confirmed by the Northern Bank robbery last December.

“Various IMC (Independent Monitoring Commission) reports have corroborated this and coming from South Armagh I know, all too well, the extent of IRA criminality, fuel smuggling and other illegal activities.

“The republican movement is probably the largest organised crime network in the British Isles. Governments and all investigative agencies must pursue justice with zero tolerance for criminals.”

David Ford, leader of the cross-community Alliance Party, claimed the action proved the ARA was determined to go after criminals on both sides of Northern Ireland’s sectarian divide.

He said: “For some time, unionist politicians have claimed that the ARA was only taking action against unionists, not republicans.

“It is clear from today’s news that a very significant operation has been under way for some time directed against republicans. A seizure on this scale must have required an enormous investment of time and other resources.”