Maze escapee to face kidnap trial

The Maze Prison escapee Brendan ‘Bik’ McFarlane is set to face trial in connection with the kidnapping of a supermarket boss in 1983 after a Supreme Court judgement went against him today.

The former IRA member was arrested by gardaí in 1998 and charged with possession of a firearm with intention to endanger life, unlawful possession of a firearm, and falsely imprisoning supermarket chief executive Don Tidy near Ballinamore, County Leitrim.