This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-29444256
The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 1 | Version 2 |
---|---|
The Disappeared: Human remains found in search for Brendan Megraw | The Disappeared: Human remains found in search for Brendan Megraw |
(35 minutes later) | |
Human remains have been found in County Meath by a team searching for an IRA victim missing for almost 40 years. | Human remains have been found in County Meath by a team searching for an IRA victim missing for almost 40 years. |
They were found in a drainage ditch on Oristown bog, near Kells, by contractors called in to prepare the site for forensic excavations. | |
The land is being examined in the search for the remains of Belfast man Brendan Megraw, following fresh information from Sinn Féin. | |
He was one of the 16 murder victims that became known as the Disappeared. | He was one of the 16 murder victims that became known as the Disappeared. |
Mr Megraw was 23 when he was abducted from Twinbrook in Belfast in 1978, and murdered by the IRA. | Mr Megraw was 23 when he was abducted from Twinbrook in Belfast in 1978, and murdered by the IRA. |
The IRA claimed that he had confessed to being a British provocateur and Military Reaction Force undercover agent. | The IRA claimed that he had confessed to being a British provocateur and Military Reaction Force undercover agent. |
Investigators from the Independent Commission for the Location of Victims' Remains (ICLVR) - set up by the British and Irish governments to liaise with former paramilitaries to find the Disappeared - confirmed a body was being recovered on Wednesday. | |
Geoff Knupfer, a lead forensic investigator with the ICLVR, said the team had been clearing out drains when they unearthed remains. | |
Formal identification | |
"A microscopic search of the ground will be taking place to ensure nothing is left to chance," he said. | |
The state pathologist is to begin the process of a post-mortem examination and formal identification. | |
Mr Knupfer said the commission had received fresh information from Sinn Féin in the summer of this year and as a result, a fresh dig for Mr Megraw had been getting under way. | |
However, Mr Knupfer said that he was "not at liberty" to go into the details of that information. | |
There have been three unsuccessful searches for Mr Megraw, the most recent in 2010. | There have been three unsuccessful searches for Mr Megraw, the most recent in 2010. |
In August, the ICLVR announced that a new search for Mr Megraw would get under way. | In August, the ICLVR announced that a new search for Mr Megraw would get under way. |
They said that a "geophysical survey" would be carried out on 2.5 hectares of land. | They said that a "geophysical survey" would be carried out on 2.5 hectares of land. |