The Mammoth Book of Celebrity Murders (22 page)

The media found itself reporting on what was now the third and most destructive act of the day – 22 people in total had died in three carefully executed operations, but it would be the
death of Lord Louis Mountbatten and members of his family which occupied the press. He was an old man, a member of the British aristocracy with a great history of service to his country during two
world wars. His death would also require a state funeral, a media event which would give the IRA another opportunity to remind the world of what they had achieved.

As the media got to grips with whipping the public to fever pitch over the indignation at the attack, Margaret Thatcher planned a trip to Belfast. Aware that it would take little to spark an
eruption of greater sectarian violence in the aftermath of this most outrageous attack, she avoided any public display of emotion. She arrived in Belfast, walked through the city’s main
shopping streets and talked openly with members of the public about the latest attacks. There was much applause and cheers mixed with a small amount of heckling from a group of women whose husbands
were in prison for alleged terrorist offences. She then flew by helicopter to visit one of Northern Ireland’s most fortified bases at Crossmaglen, a frequent target of terrorist attacks.

The murder of Mountbatten served to reconcile the British people in their resolve to destroy the IRA. Unlike other members of the royal family, Mountbatten had gained a sincere reputation for
having given the utmost services to his country. He certainly had a distinguished career, having served in the Navy during the First World War before going on to command the 5th Destroyer Flotilla
during the Second World War, eventually becoming the Supreme Allied Commander in South-East Asia. His experience in this region led to his appointment as Viceroy of India after the Second World
War, overseeing the granting of independence to both Pakistan and India. Known to the British people as “Lord Louis”, he was given the title of “Earl Mountbatten of Burma”
in recognition of his services to the Far East. Margaret Thatcher, Prime Minister of the day, remarked, “His life ran like a golden thread of inspiration and service to his country throughout
this century.” In India a week of mourning was declared.

Ironically, given Mountbatten’s distinguished service to Britain and indeed to a number of serving prime ministers, one area of policy in which he had cast no comment or opinion was that
of the troubles in Northern Ireland.

On that fateful day in 1979 the ever-watchful Garda were operating a number of standard check points along the border between Northern and Southern Ireland, hours before any of the attacks had
taken place. As cars approached each checkpoint they would be requested by armed members of the police force to stop. The occupants would be asked for identification papers or driving licence
details before being allowed to continue. As these border-crossing areas had been themselves the target of attack, additional armed police would be set back from the road block with weapons at the
ready should any trouble arise.

When the old Ford Zephyr approached the checkpoint and stopped the Garda officers approached the open-side window and asked a few questions to the driver who calmly responded. As the proceedings
were steadily progressing one of the other officers recognized the vehicle as having been reported stolen. The officers asked the men to climb out of the car, where they were duly arrested for
driving a stolen vehicle. The bombs had not yet exploded so there was therefore no need to assume the two men who were in the car had done anything other than steal the vehicle they were in. They
were arrested and taken to a local police station, where during police questioning, the bomb which killed Mountbatten exploded. Interest in the two men increased and the Garda soon established that
they were Thomas McMahon and Francis McGirl.

McMahon was a senior figure in the IRA, a notorious figurehead amongst IRA supporters. He was the leader of the IRA’s much-feared South Armagh Brigade, which had reputedly killed up to one
hundred British soldiers. He was also one of the first to be sent to Libya to be trained in explosives and remote detonation devices, a skill they had honed for their own terrorist purposes –
McMahon was now considered one of the IRA’s most skilled explosives experts.

The man with him, Francis McGirl, was not a heavyweight IRA member, but was known to have close connections with the group and was thought to be, if not a terrorist, then a sympathizer. His
association with McMahon on arrest would change the public’s perception of the man and later hold much sway in the Dublin courthouse where they were both now headed.

When news of the arrest hit the papers there was an undeniable hint of triumphalism – the prospect of yet another attack going unpunished was bad enough, but the murder of Mountbatten
brought out the desire for revenge in the British public and those who supported their position in the fight against terrorism. The media reported on the chance arrest of the two men, driving the
stolen car just hours before the explosions and for most who read the stories there would be no need for a trial – the two men were guilty. As their faces were spread across the newspaper
front pages it would be difficult for anyone to conclude anything other than the fact that the two men had been heavily involved in the destruction that day. Their arrest prior to the explosions
served only to suggest one of two alternative scenarios: the first being that the bomb had been detonated by a timer device; or secondly, that there had been others involved in the attack who had
actually detonated the device by remote control. The police concluded that the second scenario was the most likely, for no one would know for sure the arrival time of Mountbatten’s party, or
for that matter if he would for certain arrive that day. A timer device would have run the risk of the boat exploding in the harbour causing unplanned damage and loss of life.

After the explosions were reported McMahon and McGirl were interviewed and their clothing taken for forensic analysis. With lawyers now appointed the two men claimed they had nothing to do with
the explosions, they had been given the car and did not even know that it was stolen. Soon after they were removed to a Dublin prison where they would be held pending their court cases.

As the case developed through the media, other more unsettling rumours began to emerge regarding those who lurked in the background to Mountbatten’s murder. There had been rumours before
regarding the IRA’s link to the Russian KGB, the committee for state security. Alleged former members of the KGB claimed they had provided the bomb which wiped out Mountbatten and other
members of his group that day. It had been established that a leading member of the Irish Communist Party with connections in the IRA, also had links with senior members of the KGB. The history of
these associations can be traced way back; even Joseph Stalin had commented that he thought the Irish movement was a fair and democratic protest against British Imperialism. It was also reported
that during the 1960s the IRA had helped the Soviet agent George Blake escape from Wormwood Scrubs; in return the Russians provided further guns and ammunition. It has of course never been fully
established just who or what group provided the bomb. The IRA had the skills and a ready supply of Semtex with which to carry out these attacks, but they needed money and a source willing to
provide the heavily controlled substances required to make these explosive devices. However, with the media in full swing there was every possibility that this terrorist attack could indeed have
caused a major international incident, as the press and the public wanted an equally large target from whom to extract revenge.

McMahon and McGirl had to sit out the period before their trial in jail; there was no way they were going to get out on bail and so had to watch with the rest of the nation as Britain,
accompanied by representatives from other countries around the world, prepared to bury Mountbatten. In a state funeral befitting someone of Mountbatten’s stature, the nation laid on all the
prerequisite pomp and ceremony due to a man who had given so much of himself to his country. Armed forces from around the world, including Burma, India, the USA, France and Canada, accompanied
British servicemen escorting the naval gun carriage carrying Mountbatten’s body. The procession which commenced at Wellington Barracks, close to Buckingham Palace, travelled along the road to
Westminster Abbey where the service was to be held. Lord Mountbatten’s horse, Dolly, was led at the head of the parade with Mountbatten’s boots reversed in the stirrups. The cocked hat
of an admiral of the fleet, his sword of honour and his gold stick adorned the top of his coffin. Above the noise of the crowds which lined the streets, the music of the Royal Marines brass band
could be heard playing some of his favourite tunes. Westminster Abbey was packed with all manner of highly ranked members of the royal and political world. The Archbishop of Canterbury praised the
earl for his devotion to the Royal Navy during his service and after the public ceremony the coffin was taken to Romsey Abbey, near the Mountbatten family home in Hampshire, where, after a final
private service, Mountbatten was buried on 5 September 1979, nine days after he had been murdered.

Just a few months before the trial was due to begin the funeral re-ignited public opinion and once more the papers ran headline after headline, underscoring the public outrage at both the murder
of Mountbatten and of the killing of so many British soldiers. The defence counsel for the alleged bombers would have to fight not only the available evidence but also the overwhelming public
emotion which was evident, driven to greater heights by the emotive press coverage. The funeral produced many images, including those of Lord and Lady Brabourne, who between them had lost one
child, a mother and a father. In one shocking moment, a family had been completely decimated – someone would have to pay, the crime was too huge; the lowest compensation would be a guilty
verdict for those who committed the atrocity. In the days that followed the two bombings, thousands of residents, both Catholic and Protestant, gathered in the town square in the nearby coastal
village of Warrenpoint and held a vigil for those who had lost their lives. Afterwards they walked in a procession to the scene of the explosion and laid flowers. Covered by newspaper reporters and
the television media the scenes seemed to show a community split by religion and politics but united in their view that violence should not be carried out in their name. McMahon and McGirl would
have to face all of this in court and it would be a brave judge who would allow them to walk free.

Because of the fear of reprisal, the usual jury system did not apply to trials involving suspected members of the IRA. The long-reaching influence of the various paramilitary groups meant that
the courts could not be sure a jury would not be tampered with and as the communities were roughly split in allegiances it had proven difficult to find groups of individuals who could be depended
upon to deliver an unbiased verdict.

Presiding over the trial, held at the Anti-Terrorist Special Court in Dublin, were three senior judges, who would examine the evidence provided by the prosecution and then listen to the
rebuttals provided by the defence team. The press gathered outside and delivered a constant stream of detail regarding the progress of the trial and of the details submitted as evidence. The
accused pleaded not guilty and the trial commenced without further delay; security was heavy and visible, the prospect of a jailbreak a very real possibility.

The evidence presented consisted of four elements, three of which were based on forensic findings and the fourth purely on the fact that the accused, one of whom was a known senior IRA
operative, were driving a stolen car on the day of the bombing, in itself hardly the indisputable concrete evidence one would normally require to secure a guilty verdict. The forensic evidence
however presented a more compelling story. McMahon had traces of green paint on the sole of his boot, paint that matched that which had covered the decking of
Shadow V
. Sand particles found
in the tread of his boots matched the type of sand found around the harbour at Mullaghmore, although as the defence were apt to point out, the sand at Mullaghmore did not benefit from being unique.
Perhaps more compelling than anything were the traces of nitro-glycerine which had been found on McMahon’s clothing. At any other time it might have been possible to dismiss the paint and the
sand as almost circumstantial in that neither constituted irrefutable proof of guilt, while nitro-glycerine and the chemical parts of which it is made can be found in any number of industrial
chemicals. The judges, however, were convinced and both McMahon and McGirl were found guilty and sentenced to life imprisonment on 23 November 1979. The media triumphantly announced the verdict and
for many, justice was finally seen to be done.

Following his imprisonment, McMahon found himself back in court a short time later, this time bringing charges against those who managed his captivity, claiming that guards had broken his arm
while he was trying to resist a strip search. The drama increased to a crescendo as McMahon attempted to escape from the courthouse when he produced a small Browning pistol and managed to fire one
shot. Luckily no one was hurt but the question of how he had obtained the pistol became a mystery to which no answer has ever been found. One report suggests it was passed to him by a man with whom
he shook hands on the way into court, a possibility, but McMahon was handcuffed to a prison officer at all times. He was, however, released from the handcuffs in order to visit the toilet, where it
is suggested he collected the weapon which had been hidden there sometime earlier. It has even been suggested that the weapon was provided by a member of the security forces. The attempted escape
involving the pistol reflected badly on McMahon and the press once again vilified the man for his propensity for violence.

McGirl, who had been convicted more or less by association, had his sentence quashed at an appeal hearing in 1980, and died following a tractor accident in 1995.