A Northern Ireland man accused of carrying out an IRA bomb attack 18 years ago left traces of blood in the back of a Catholic priest’s car after the explosion, a court has been told.
Paul Campbell, 37, of Coalisland is accused of attempting to bomb a police station in the Co Tyrone town back in 1997.
Campbell was arrested on 25 October on a train from Belfast to Dublin by detectives investigating the bombing. Police officers boarded the Enterprise train when it stopped at Portadown and took Campbell into custody.
At Dungannon magistrates’ court on Wednesday, the Crown alleged that its primary evidence against Campbell were blood stains found in the back of a Catholic priest’s car shortly after the explosion.
Campbell was charged with causing an explosion during the attack at a time when the Provisional IRA was no longer on ceasefire.
The sortie on the police base was thwarted by undercover SAS soldiers, who opened fire on those throwing improvised blast bombs at the station.
One man who was shot at the scene was convicted of the attack and served two years in prison before being released, as part of the de facto amnesty for paramilitary prisoners under the 1998 Good Friday agreement.
The court also heard that one injured bomber jumped into the back of a car being driven by a local parish priest, Seamus Rice.
A detective sergeant from the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) told the judge the priest informed police officers at the time that he had slowed down after hearing explosions, and the man unknown to him jumped in the back and demanded that he drive off.
The back window of the car was shattered amid a hail of bullets and the priest said the man got out of the car a short time later.
Blood found in the vehicle was later matched to that of Campbell’s by modern DNA testing.
The detective sergeant said a man calling himself John Murphy presented at a hospital in Co Louth the following day with a gunshot wound.
She said he gave the same date of birth as Campbell and told staff he had sustained the injuries falling off a motorcycle.
A bullet was found lodged in his body during a medical examination and removed, added the officer.
Peter Corrigan, representing Campbell, told the court his client had not been living in the Irish Republic since the incident.
Campbell’s lawyer said his client had been residing openly in Coalisland for periods, including working in his uncle’s bar.
The detective told the court that grounds to arrest Campbell only emerged in 2011 as a consequence of another police investigation in Coalisland.
At that point, said the officer, Campbell moved across the border to Co Monaghan.
The PSNI officer opposed bail, citing risks of reoffending, interfering with witnesses and absconding from the jurisdiction.
The officer told the court Campbell did not answer any questions during 14 recorded interviews or when the charge was put to him in custody.
Corrigan insisted bail should be granted and questioned why it had taken police so long to arrest his client if blood samples were obtained from the car in 1997.
The solicitor claimed there was no risk of interfering with witnesses, highlighting that the main evidence was based on testimony from SAS soldiers, a scientific expert in blood analysis and the priest, who already said he could not identify the accused.
Pointing to apparent deficiencies in the prosecution case, Corrigan said: “This defendant has every incentive to attend court.”
He was granted bail by district judge John Meehan but the Northern Ireland Public Prosecution Service is appealing the decision and his case will be heard in the high court on Thursday.
The judge told Campbell he would remain in custody until the appeal was heard.
