A Belfast court on Saturday denied the bail of high-profile loyalist Winston Irvine who is charged with firearm offences.
The 46-year-old man former Progressive Unionist Party (PUP) head of communications was arrested on Wednesday as part of an investigation into a separate hoax bomb incident that led to the evacuation of Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney from a peace event on March 25.
Coveney was removed from the stage mid-speech at the event organised by the John and Pat Hume Foundation at the Houben Centre on Crumlin Road, north Belfast, after two masked gunmen allegedly hijacked a van and forced the driver to drive to the adjacent Holy Cross Church, carrying a device that the driver thought was a live bomb.
The police later declared the device was a hoax. The Houben Centre and more than 25 nearby homes were evacuated over the incident. A funeral service at the Holy Cross Church, local schools, and a nursing home were also affected.
Police also said at the time that pro-British loyalist militants, most likely from the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF), were behind the attack.
Detectives from the Terrorism Investigation Unit of the Police Service of Northern Ireland on Wednesday arrested Irvine and another 51-year-old man “under the Terrorism Act” and seized their vehicles for examination.
Irvine appeared at Laganside Magistrates’ Court in Belfast on Saturday, charged with possession of a firearm and ammunition in suspicious circumstances, possession of a prohibited firearm, possession of a handgun without a certificate, and possession of ammunition without a certificate.
A detective inspector told the court that officers found a number of weapons and ammunition in a bag in the boot of Irvine’s car on Wednesday after a search.
The court heard that Irvine had told the police that he had nothing to do with the content of the bag.
A number of UVF pins and pendants and a balaclava were also found at Irvine’s address, the court was told.
A defence lawyer told the court that Irvine was a “renowned peace builder” who had demonstrated public support for the peace process. He also said Irvine was a member of the Police Community Partnership Board in north Belfast.
A district judge denied an application for bail following the detective inspector’s objection, stating that a “significant haul of weapons and ammunition” had been recovered.
Irvine was remanded in custody to appear in court again on July 1.
He was the second person charged in relation to the incident.
On March 30, 40-year-old Darren Service was charged with the preparation of terrorist acts, hijacking, and placing a hoax bomb.
Police tracked him down through a replacement car he was driving at the time because his car was being serviced.
The vehicle was caught on CCTV moving behind the allegedly hijacked van before passing it near the place where the gunmen allegedly unboarded the van and the device was put in the van.
A detective inspector previously told the court that the two men took the driver’s wallet and phone and threatened to shoot him or harm his family.
The court was also told that when officers searched Service’s home they found two balaclavas, UVF lapel pins, an air rifle, class b drugs, a large amount of cash (£100,000), and high-value jewellery.
Service was denied bail on March 31 and remanded in custody.
The UVF were among the loyalist militant groups who last year temporarily withdrew their support for a 1998 peace deal, in protest at the trade border between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom created by Britain’s exit from the European Union.
A small number of militant groups remain active and carry out occasional attacks, but their capacity is tiny relative to during the Troubles, the 30-year conflict between Irish nationalists seeking unification with the Irish Republic and the British Army, and pro-British loyalists determined to keep Northern Ireland under British rule.
