Freddie Scappaticci, the man widely identified as the army’s long serving informer inside the IRA, has admitted two counts of possessing extreme pornography.
Scappaticci, 72, who has been widely identified as Agent Stakeknife, appeared briefly at Westminster magistrates court in central London on Wednesday morning to admit the charges.
He spoke only to enter his pleas to the charges. The chief magistrate, Emma Arbuthnot, sentenced him to three months in custody, suspended for 12 months.
The court heard the charges related to at least 329 images, including bestiality. There were no images involving children.
The magistrate said: “You have not been before the court for 50 years – and that’s good character in my book.”
Scappaticci has always denied being Stakeknife, who is alleged to have led the republican movement’s counter-intelligence operations. Known as the “nutting squad”, the IRA’s internal security unit interrogated and murdered suspected army and police informers during Northern Ireland’s Troubles.
His court appearance was announced in a statement released by Operation Kenova, the police investigation into the activities of the former double agent. It is headed by the chief constable of Bedfordshire, John Boutcher.
Scappaticci was charged with two counts of possession of extreme pornographic images, contrary to Section 63 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008. The charges covered the period from October 2015 to January this year.
