Jon Boutcher blasts Mi5 for late submission of material to Operation Kenova team investigating Freddie Scappaticci aka ‘Stakeknife’
Jon Boutcher has blasted Mi5 for submitting material to the Operation Kenova team ‘so long’ after it undertook to give full access to their probe into Freddie Scappaticci, codenamed ‘Stakeknife’.
The PSNI Chief Constable formerly led the long-running investigation into the activities of the British Army agent who operated within the IRA in the 1980s and 1990s.
Scappaticci was linked to a series of kidnappings, tortures and murders when he was working as a double agent within the IRA’s Internal Security Unit. He died aged 77 in April 2023.
In March the interim Operation Kenova report was published under the leadership of Mr. Boutcher’s successor Iain Livingstone, Officer In Overall Command of Operation Kenova.
The interim report outlined how it had investigated 101 murders and abductions in total.
It has now emerged that the British domestic security agency Mi5 has submitted fresh material to the team.
In response to this development Mr. Boutcher said: “It is unacceptable that MI5 continue to provide material to the Operation Kenova Team so long after they undertook to have given full access to Kenova of all the material they held about the agent Stakeknife.”
In his hard-hitting statement the top police officer referred to John Stevens’ reported experiences while investigating the activities of British Army Force Research Unit (FRU) and Ulster Defence Association (UDA) co-member Brian Nelson, and to the reported experiences of Peter de Carteret Cory, the Canadian judge, who examined allegations of state collusion relating to the murders of Pat Finucane, Robert Hamill, Rosemary Nelson and Billy Wright.
"My interim report highlighted a number of issues in obtaining information from MI5 and I reported the similar experiences of Lord Stevens, Judge Cory and others who each called out the unacceptable practices of those not co-operating with and withholding information from legacy investigations.
“The fact that this information continues to be provided to the Operation Kenova Team after the Public Prosecution Service have directed on the files submitted to them will cause further upset to the families who had already waited many years to find out what happened to their loved ones,” said the Chief Constable.
He said he was confident Iain Livingstone, the current Kenova lead, will ‘ensure all the material is fully assessed and will liaise closely with the Director of the Public Prosecution Service to determine if any further direction is necessary’.
"I very much look forward to his final report that will comment more fully on these most recent disclosures. I have a huge respect for our intelligence agencies as they work tirelessly to keep society safe however, I remain concerned that where matters relating to Northern Ireland’s legacy are involved there continues to be an unhelpful protectionist approach to disclosure. This results in wild conspiracy theories and inaccurate reporting about legacy cases.
“During the Troubles the security forces acted with immense bravery and endured huge sacrifices and that should never be forgotten but we must challenge practices that prevent information about Troubles related cases from being released where there is no good reason. As the Chief Constable of the PSNI I am determined that all information, including all sensitive information, relating to Troubles related cases will be disclosed to the new legacy Commission (ICRIR) established to investigate such cases,” said Mr. Boutcher.
Iain Livingston, meanwhile, has written to the Secretary of State, Hilary Benn, to raise concerns after previously undisclosed material was recently discovered and made available to the investigation by MI5.
He has advised he was informed of the initial find on April 8, 2024, with further files subsequently being discovered. The most recent notification was made on July 19.
Kenova has carried out an initial review of the material and consulted with the Director of Public Prosecutions Stephen Herron.
"It is of great concern that further material continues to be given to Operation Kenova by MI5 nearly eight years after Operation Kenova commenced; after all the DPPNI determinations in the prosecution reports have been made; following the publication of the Operation Kenova Interim report; and a matter of weeks before the introduction of the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act 2023.
"I have directed that the new information be analysed and checked for evidence and information that could have assisted both Operation Kenova and the DPPNI in their work, as well as for any implications for the accuracy of the Kenova Interim Report. This work continues.
"From the due diligence carried out, our initial assessment is that the files contain significant new material which appears to point to new investigative leads not previously known. Importantly the material does not indicate further murders of individuals that involved the agent ‘Stakeknife’ and as such no further deaths would fall into the Operation Kenova Terms of Reference based on the now disclosed material.
"However, the material does appear to cast doubt on some of the documents and witness evidence obtained by Kenova and some statements made in the Interim Report. This includes information provided by the security service around the dates when they became aware of the agent ‘Stakeknife’,” he said.
From the initial assessment it appears that all the newly disclosed material relates solely to the activities of ‘Stakeknife’, the Operation Kenova team has confirmed.
Following the development Mr. Boutcher said: “I want to personally reassure the families who have put their trust in the Operation Kenova that Sir Iain and his team will do everything necessary to analyse the material for any new evidence.”