Two former paratroopers accused of the murder of an Official IRA leader have been formally acquitted after prosecutors offered no further evidence at their trial.
The veterans’ trial at Belfast Crown Court collapsed after the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) confirmed it would not appeal against a decision by Justice O’Hara to exclude statements given by the ex-soldiers about the shooting of Joe McCann in 1972. It was the first trial in several years that involved charges against former military personnel who served in the Northern Ireland conflict. Decisions to prosecute have been taken in four other cases involving veterans, while decisions are pending in three others. The PPS has defended its decision to take the prosecution against soldiers A and C but has said it will assess whether the judge’s ruling will have an impact on the other military cases before the courts. McCann, 24, was shot dead by paratroopers as he attempted to evade arrest by a plain-clothed police officer in the Markets Area of Belfast in April 1972.
