Northern ireland

• 1986 - 1990
• United Kingdom

Identification of the Source

Mindb4Act Project report

Description

Born in 1955, he joined the IRA in the early 1970s, and claimed to be the leader of the Fianna in 1972.
He has been working as a RUC agent since 1979.
XX gravitated towards the INLA in late 1980.
XX himself eventually fell out with the INLA in 1983, after helping two hostages escape from INLA custody. Then, the INLA took his wife and children as hostages.
His family was soon released and Ward went to prison - but by then he knew he was a marked man. "I would have to die," he later said.23 Towards the end of his prison sentence in 1985, Mr. Ward sought the assistance of the prison chaplain for protection from INLA members. The chaplain, with the assistance of the police, obtained a Republic of Ireland passport for XX and an airline tickets to Canada.
XX arrived in Toronto in December 1985 and sought admission to Canada as a visitor.
He became the subject of an inquiry in May 1986.

Type of Crime

To join a terrorist group called INLA, the more extreme organisation of IRA.

Modus Operandi

People involved

XX

Criminal History

He joined the IRA in the early 1970s, and claimed to be the leader of the Fianna, the youth wing of the IRA, in 1972. According to XX, in a testimony given in the Saville Inquiry into the 1972 incident which claimed 14 lives (known as the "Bloody Sunday" incident), he was given around 16 nail bombs to be distributed in highly populated areas in Londonderry, the second largest city in Northern Ireland. XX claimed he was instructed to do so by high ranking IRA members.

Influential and/or vulnerable Groups

The INLA, the more extreme organisation