IRA cover-up letter is 'hoax'

The victim was shot in a pub

Both the Northern Ireland Office and the Ulster Unionist Party have cast doubt on the authenticity of a letter which claims the IRA were behind a pub murder in Belfast last month.

The letter was produced by Democratic Unionist Party security spokesman Ian Paisley Jnr who claimed it showed an attempt to "cover-up" IRA links with the shooting dead of Ed McCoy in Dunmurry on 28 May.

Royal Ulster Constabulary Chief Constable Sir Ronnie Flanagan said there were indications of an IRA link but that it "was too soon to be definitive".

Anti-agreement unionists are seeking the exclusion of Sinn Fein from the power-sharing executive but have yet to secure the signatures of 30 assembly members needed for a debate on the issue.

They have been demanding Sinn Fein's exclusion since the BBC reported the possible involvement of the IRA in the shooting last week.

Mr Paisley said he was handed a copy of a letter which he claims was written by Secretary of State Peter Mandelson to First Minister David Trimble.

According to the DUP assembly member, the letter said it would be "counterproductive" if information about the link between the shooting and the IRA, who are on ceasefire, were to be made public at this time.

Ian Paisley Jnr: Alleges "conspiracy of silence"

"They've tried to keep silent on the murder of a man in Northern Ireland and they can't keep silent."

He called for a clarification on who was involved in the murder and asked why there was a silence on who killed Mr McCoy.

A spokesman for the NIO said there was no record of such a letter, which the BBC understands was type-written and unsigned, while First Minister David Trimble claimed it was a hoax.

The Ulster Unionist leader said it was a pity the DUP had issued a response to the letter without checking its authenticity.

He did say he was concerned over the statement by Sir Ronnie Flanagan earlier on Tuesday and added he hoped the chief constable would be able to make a "definitive" comment on who was involved later on.

Sinn Fein assembly member Mitchel McLaughlin has said the alleged leak was part of a concerted campaign among "securocrats" to thwart the changes envisaged in the Good Friday Agreement.

Mr McCoy was killed in the Motte'n'Bailey pub in Dunmurry just a day after the Ulster Unionist Council voted in favour of returning to devolved government alongside Sinn Fein.

Two men wearing disguises entered the bar, singled out their victim who had been drinking with friends, and shot him a number of times.

Mr McCoy, who was 28 years old and single, died after emergency surgery at the Royal Victoria Hospital.

It was thought the main line of inquiry being followed by police was that the killing had been drugs-related.

Sir Ronnie Flanagan: Comment on murder

As he arrived at the annual Police Federation conference, RUC Chief Constable Sir Ronnie Flanagan said: "We certainly have not excluded the Provisional IRA and there are certain intelligence indications that that is the organisation responsible.

"But it's too soon to be definitive in any sense."

Sir Ronnie had been under pressure to make a public statement after senior security sources told the BBC that the IRA was responsible for the murder.

Implications for ceasefire

He said he had briefed Secretary of State Peter Mandelson "on the circumstances".

Mr Mandelson has made it clear in the past, that if any organisation on ceasefire was found to be involved in Mr McCoy's murder, it would have a direct impact on his assessment of the ceasefire and therefore early prisoner releases under the Good Friday Agreement.

The killing happened in a mixed Roman Catholic and Protestant area and close to the local police station.

Meanwhile, the DUP and the Northern Ireland Unionist Party have yet to agree which party's motion to exclude Sinn Fein will be put forward for debate at the assembly next week.