Man arrested over Belfast murder of Robert McCartney
Police detain a man in South Armagh over the 2005 murder of Robert McCartney outside a bar in Belfast. No-one has been convicted for his killing, which his family has blamed on members of the IRA.
A police spokesman said: “Detectives from PSNI Serious Crime Branch have arrested a 51-year-old man in Jonesborough this morning in connection to inquiries linked to the murder of Robert McCartney in Belfast in January 2005.
“He has been taken to Antrim Serious Crime Suite for questioning.”
Mr McCartney was beaten and stabbed to death outside Magennis’ bar in January 2005. At the time the allegations from his family that republicans had silenced potential witnesses had serious repercussions for Sinn Fein which was then involved in delicate political negotiations aimed at securing its support for the police.
Striving to bring their brother’s killer to justice, Mr McCartney’s sisters and partner led a high-profile campaign which took them to Dublin, the European parliament and Washington, where they met President George W Bush.