In response to an announcement by An Garda Siochana of proposed criminal proceedings arising from their investigation, the Donaldson family issue the following response:
“The charges to which Gardai referred today were sparked by a new avenue in their investigation opened back in 2012. That development had coincided with the decision by the current Police Ombudsman to reopen an inquiry into the role of senior PSNI intelligence officers in a criminal conspiracy to expose and endanger Denis Donaldson.
“We are mindful of the fact that the individual who may face charges is not physically amenable to Gardaí and he is currently serving a massive prison sentence outside of the jurisdiction. Following his release from custody, he faces an additional 3 year supervisory release in that jurisdiction. Therefore, even with a fair wind, it is highly unlikely that any criminal proceedings might meaningfully be commenced until a further decade at least passes by.
“In these circumstances, what should invite more public scrutiny is that the new phase in the Garda investigation and the related criminal charges announced today have their genesis in an eavesdropping surveillance operation conducted by MI5. It has been the Family’s consistent contention that officers in MI5 and PSNI Special Branch who had exposed Denis as an agent.
“The Deputy Chief Constable of Police Scotland and the Commissioner of An Garda Siochana are both aware of the identity of Denis’s handler and his supervising officer who are the subject of the complaint to the Police Ombudsman by the Donaldson family.
“Today’s ‘breakthrough’ has now been publicised just as the final report by the Police Ombudsman is due to be released to the Donaldson family. Despite this, our interest remains establishing the truth.”
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