The father of one of the three men who died during an SAS test claims he was lied to about where his son collapsed to make it appear that help reached him faster than it really did.
David Dunsby told the inquest into the three men, who died from heat illness, that he was misled and demanded to know why there had been an apparent attempt to “disguise” what happened.
The reservists, Cpl James Dunsby and Lance Cpls Craig Roberts and Edward Maher all died after collapsing in searing temperatures on the Brecon Beacons in south Wales, in July 2013.
In a statement to the inquest, Dunsby described how he had wanted to see where his son fell and “finish” the 16-mile test march for him. But he was taken to a spot he later realised was 800m from where his son was actually found.
Dunsby said: “I now know the location that I was taken was the wrong position. I am concerned that I was given misinformation, and who this served. As a parent I need to know why I was lied to regarding James’s position on the day and why it was so necessary to disguise what happened.”
He added: “The evidence shows that my son James was alone and possibly in distress for as long as 90 minutes. These 90 minutes demonstrate the army failed in protecting and rescuing our son.”
Dunsby also alleged that three soldiers lied to him on another occasion about the circumstances of his son’s collapse.
Family members had been asked if they would like to meet some of the soldiers who took part in selection march. Dunsby said: “We were told that we could ask any question of them regarding what happened that day.
“I knew that there may be questions that the soldiers would be unable to answer and therefore I requested that if they felt uncomfortable answering any of our questions, they should not answer if they could not tell us the truth. We felt strongly that we’d rather they said nothing than give us false information.”
They told him when they had last seen James Dunsby and said there had been an exchange of the “usual banter and abuse”. They said he seemed “OK” at that point. Again, this information suggested James had not been alone for long before he was found, Dunsby said.
But Dunsby said the evidence revealed in the inquest showed their version of events could not have been true. “We now know that the information we were given was an impossibility as the locator beacons, witness statements, routes and timelines do not support their version of events.
“It’s hard for me to understand why the soldiers would lie to us, especially having asked them not to answer rather than provide us with false information.”
The inquest continues.
