‘Committed, violent terrorist’ in court over attempted PSNI station bombing

By Cillian Sherlock, Press Association

A 47-year-old man has appeared in court charged with attempted murder over an attempted car bomb attack on Lurgan PSNI station.

The New IRA claimed responsibility for the incident that saw a pizza delivery driver hijacked in Kilwilkie and forced to drive a pipe bomb to the station on the night of March 30th.

The device did not explode but was deemed to be viable before being made safe and tested for forensics.

Barry Anthony Toman, with an address at Drumnamoe Avenue in Lurgan, appeared before the Craigavon Magistrates’ Court via videolink on Friday.

He was described as a “committed, violent terrorist” as the court was told his DNA could be found on five different parts of the bomb.

Toman was charged with attempted murder, an attempt to cause an explosion, and hijacking by compelling a person to drive a car carrying an improvised explosive device relating to the attack near Lurgan PSNI station.

He was also charged with possession of explosives with intent to endanger life on a date before March 31st.

He was one of three people arrested on Wednesday by police investigating the incident.

In court on Friday, he spoke only to confirm he understood the charges against him.

A Detective Chief Inspector with the PSNI said he could connect the accused to the charges as he outlined DNA, CCTV, and phone evidence to the court.

The DCI explained that, on the night in question, a pizza delivery driver was responding to an order made over the phone with the cost to be paid on delivery.

The address on the delivery was at the top end of an alleyway, with the occupants of the house later telling police they did not make the order.

The DCI said Toman’s home address was on the 200m long alleyway.

He said CCTV showed two people emerging before making demands and physically ushering the driver into the alleyway.

Police assert that one of the people, a male, primed the bomb and placed it into the boot of the driver’s car before a second male brings the delivery driver back to the car door and makes a threatening motion.

The DCI said the driver drove the bomb to the front gate of Lurgan PSNI station under instruction, where he told the police about the bomb.

The hearing heard specifics on how the timing device was intended to detonate the bomb, which was described as a timed pipe bomb containing explosives and shrapnel surrounded by jars of flammable liquid to “create maximum fire damage”.

The area around the station was cordoned off, and nearby premises were evacuated before army technical officers were called to the scene.

The DCI said DNA matching Toman was found on five locations on the device, including the edge of a battery compartment, an AA battery that was found in the boot that was believed to have been in the bomb, a piece of tape holding wires, and on a screw.

The court heard that over the course of more than five hours across nine police interviews, Toman did not provide any comment to questions.

However, after being presented with the DNA evidence, he provided a prepared statement in which he explained he had worked on construction sites and public places where he had been in constant contact with screws, batteries and other tools.

The DCI said he did not answer further questions relating to this.

The PSNI representative said a phone present on Toman at the time of his arrest did not have any device commands recorded before April 5, which he said suggested a physical act to delete the information.

The DCI also said his home address, the area where the attack happened, and the area the pizza delivery order was made were all contained within the same phone cell area.

He said the phone used to make the order was a prepaid no-details held phone.

The DCI said a 15-year-old had paid for a relevant top-up for that phone with a £20 note and a file had been prepared for the Public Prosecution Service.

The PSNI said there was a photo on Toman’s phone of a £20 note and a £10 note approximately two hours before that top-up.

The DCI told the court it was the PSNI’s belief the accused was a “committed violent terrorist”.

Under questioning from Toman’s solicitor Gavin Booth, the DCI said the CCTV was not good enough to make out who the men were and was not currently enough to identify the accused.

The DCI also accepted the cell-site analysis could not triangulate the calls to a single person or location.

He said there was “nothing at this stage” to link Toman to the phone used to contact the delivery order.

Under further questioning by Booth, he said the “preliminary” DNA evidence was made up of one partial sample and a number of mixed samples.

He accepted that it could not be used to determine who was the last person to touch an object.

The DCI said in one of the mixed samples it meant he was one of two people to touch the object.

He added that in the partial sample, the likelihood of it being someone other than Toman was “a billion to one”.

The court also heard that DNA can be transferred from one location to another.

The magistrate said he was satisfied the PSNI had sufficient evidence to properly connect the accused to the offending

There was no bail application at the hearing and legal aid was granted.

The matter will return before the courts on June 5th.

Elsewhere, a 39-year-old woman has been charged with obstructing police in relation to the incident.

She has been released unconditionally in respect of perverting the course of justice and assisting an offender and is expected to appear before Craigavon Magistrates’ Court on June 3rd.

A 15-year-old boy was released pending a report to the Public Prosecution Service.