DNA test on bank notes can help catch soldiers' killers
Bank notes used to buy a car may provide vital clues about the terrorists who planned the attack on the Massereene Barracks which left two soldiers dead.
It is understood that detectives investigating the murders of sappers Patrick Azimkar, 21, and Mark Quinsey, 23, a fortnight ago have seized a bundle of notes handed over to a man in payment for a car he advertised for sale on the internet.
It is understood that a mobile phone used to contact the car owner to conclude the deal to buy the car may also have been traced.
The PSNI refused to discuss any details of the investigation, but chief constable Hugh Orde has indicated that he was optimistic that the enquiry would lead to charges being brought in relation to the double murder.
Four men are still being questioned about the murders of the two sappers, who were due to fly to Afghanistan on the evening they were gunned down as they received pizzas from two local delivery men outside their base in Co Antrim.
Two civilians and two soldiers were seriously injured in the attack and are recovering in hospital.
Four men were taken into custody over a week ago and can be held for 28 days for questioning under the Terrorism Act 2006.
It is understood that the man who sold the car didn't spend the cash or lodge the notes in a bank because he wanted to use the money to purchase another car.
Forensic tests on the notes are now being conducted to see if any DNA or fingerprints found on them match any of the men in custody or their associates.
A Vauxhall Cavalier car was found on the Ranaghan Road in Randalstown about seven miles from the Massereene base two hours after the murders on Saturday, March 7.
An attempt had been made to burn it to destroy any forensic traces, however, the fire burned out, leaving a large section of the interior of the vehicle undamaged.
Police sources say that DNA samples recovered from the car are "promising" pieces of evidence.
Since the murders of the two soldiers at Massereene and Constable Stephen Carroll two nights later by the Continuity IRA, police have mounted regular road checks around Belfast to prevent a bomb attack on the city.
Another dissident group, Oglaigh na hEireann, is believed to have brought a bomb, possibly around the size of the device used in Omagh 10 years ago, to a suburb on the outskirts of Belfast.
One security source suggested that the bomb had been under surveillance but had "slipped the net" and had been effectively lost somewhere in the transfer to Belfast from a rural area.
Since last Saturday, people in the city have seen the return of police road checks around Belfast as the PSNI carries out anti-terrorist operations to try to locate the device.
- Alan Murray
