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{{short description|Irish republican}}
{{Short description|Irish republican paramilitary}}
{{pp-vandalism|small=yes}}
{{EngvarB|date=June 2017}}
{{EngvarB|date=June 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}}

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[[File:Cropped image of Bobby Storey.jpg|thumb|Bobby Storey]]
{{Infobox Military person
'''Robert Storey''' (1956 – June 2020)<ref>{{cite tweet |user=sinnfeinireland |number=1274707280412508163 |date=21 June 2020 |title=Sinn Féin President @MaryLouMcDonald has expressed deep sadness at the death of Belfast republican Bobby Storey https://sinnfein.ie/contents/57204}}</ref> was a [[Provisional Irish Republican Army]] (IRA) [[Volunteer (Irish republican)|volunteer]] from Belfast, Northern Ireland. He was sentenced to a total of 25 years in jail but was released early under the terms of the [[Belfast Agreement]]. Prior to an 18-year conviction for possessing a rifle, he also spent time on remand for a variety of charges and in total served 20 years in prison. He also played a key role in the [[Maze Prison escape]], the biggest prison break in UK penal history.<ref>''An Phoblacht'', 18.12 2008. Pg. 8–9</ref>
| name = Bobby Storey
| honorific_suffix =
⚫
| image = Cropped image of Bobby Storey.jpg
| image_size = 250px
| caption = Storey in 2012
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1956|04|11|df=yes}}
| birth_place = Marrowbone, [[Belfast]], [[Northern Ireland]]
| death_date = {{death date and age|2020|06|21|1956|04|11|df=yes}}
| death_place = [[Newcastle upon Tyne]], England<ref>{{cite news |title=Body of leading IRA figure Bobby Storey returns home for funeral |url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/body-of-leading-ira-figure-bobby-storey-returns-home-for-funeral-39319792.html |access-date=14 September 2022 |work=belfasttelegraph |quote="Mr Storey (64), who died in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne"}}</ref>
| death_cause = Unsuccessful [[Lung transplantation|lung transplant]]<ref>{{Cite news |date=2020-06-26 |title=Body of leading IRA figure Bobby Storey returns home for funeral |url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/body-of-leading-ira-figure-bobby-storey-returns-home-for-funeral/39319792.html |access-date=2024-07-30 |work=BelfastTelegraph.co.uk |language=en-GB |issn=0307-1235}}</ref>
| placeofburial = [[Milltown Cemetery]]
| birth_name = Robert Storey
| occupation =
| alma_mater =
| branch = [[Provisional Irish Republican Army]]
| branch_label = Paramilitary
| serviceyears = 1972–2000s
| rank = [[IRA Director of Intelligence|Director of Intelligence]] <small>(alleged)</small>
| unit = [[Provisional IRA Belfast Brigade|Belfast Brigade]]
| known_for =
| battles = [[The Troubles]]
}}

'''Robert Storey''' (11 April 1956 – 21 June 2020)<ref name="bowyerbell">{{cite book |last=Bowyer Bell |first =J. |author-link=J. Bowyer Bell |year=2017 |title=The Dynamics of the Armed Struggle |location=London |publisher=[[Routledge]] |pages=81–83 |isbn=978-0714644226}}</ref><ref name=Moriarty>{{Cite news |last=Moriarty |first=Gerry |title=Bobby Storey: The IRA's planner and enforcer who stayed in the shadows |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/bobby-storey-the-ira-s-planner-and-enforcer-who-stayed-in-the-shadows-1.4292981 |newspaper=Irish Times |date=30 June 2020 |access-date=1 July 2020}}</ref> was a [[Provisional Irish Republican Army]] (IRA) [[Volunteer (Irish republican)|volunteer]] from [[Belfast]], Northern Ireland. Prior to an 18-year conviction for possessing a rifle, he also spent time on [[remand (detention)|remand]] for a variety of charges and in total served 20 years in prison. He also played a key role in the [[Maze Prison escape]], the biggest prison break in British penal history.<ref name="bowyerbell"/><ref name="bowyerbell3">{{cite book |last=Bowyer Bell |first=J. |author-link=J. Bowyer Bell |year=1997 |title=The Secret Army: The IRA |location=Piscataway, NJ |publisher=Transaction Publishers |page=543 |isbn=1-56000-901-2}}</ref>


==Early life==
==Early life==
The family was originally from the Marrowbone area, on the Oldpark Road in North Belfast. The family had to move when Bobby was very young due to [[Ulster loyalism|Ulster loyalist]] attacks on the district, moving to Manor Street, an [[interface area]] also in North Belfast. Bobby's father, also Bobby, was involved in the defence of the area in the 1970s.<ref name="auto">''An Phoblacht'', 18.12.08. Pg.8–9</ref>
The family was originally from the Marrowbone area, on the Oldpark Road in North Belfast. The family had to move when Storey was very young due to [[Ulster loyalism|Ulster loyalist]] attacks on the district, moving to Manor Street, an [[interface area]] also in North Belfast. Storey's uncle was boxing trainer [[Gerry Storey]] and his father, also called Bobby, was involved in the defence of the area in the 1970s when Catholics were threatened by loyalists.<ref name="McRae">{{cite book |last=McRae |first=Donald |author-link=Donald McRae (author) |year=2019 |title=In Sunshine or in Shadow: How Boxing Brought Hope In The Troubles |location=New York |publisher=Simon & Schuster |pages=44–45 |isbn=978-1471163135}}</ref>


Bobby was one of four children. He had two brothers, Seamus and Brian, and a sister Geraldine. Seamus escaped from Crumlin Road Jail in 1971. Seamus and Bobby senior had been arrested after a raid on their home which uncovered a rifle and a pistol. Bobby senior was later released but Seamus was charged. He escaped a couple of months later.<ref name="auto"/>
Storey was one of four children. He had two brothers, Seamus and Brian, and a sister Geraldine.<ref name="McRae"/> Seamus and Bobby senior had been arrested after a raid on their home which uncovered a rifle and a pistol.<ref name="McRae"/> Bobby senior was later released but Seamus was charged.<ref name="McRae"/> Seamus escaped from [[HM Prison Belfast|Crumlin Road Gaol]] with eight other prisoners in 1971, they were dubbed the Crumlin Kangaroos.<ref name="McRae"/>


On his mother Peggy's side of the family there was also a history of republicanism, but Bobby, according to ''[[An Phoblacht]]'', says "the dominant influences on" him "were the events that were happening around" him. These included the [[McGurk's Bar bombing]] in the [[New Lodge, Belfast|New Lodge]], some of those killed being people who knew his family, and also [[Bloody Sunday 1972]]. This then led to his attempts to join the IRA.<ref name="auto"/>
On his mother Peggy's side of the family there was also a history of [[Irish republicanism|republicanism]], but Storey said "the dominant influences on" him "were the events that were happening around" him.<ref name="ap">{{Cite news | title = 'Big Bobby': Arrests, interrogations, imprisonment and struggle - the 'Storey' of his life |url=https://www.anphoblacht.com/contents/19514 |newspaper=[[An Phoblacht]] |date=18 December 2008 |access-date=8 July 2020}}</ref> These included the [[McGurk's Bar bombing]] in the [[New Lodge, Belfast|New Lodge]], some of those killed being people who knew his family,<ref name="ap"/><ref>{{cite book |last=McRae |first=Donald |author-link=Donald McRae (author) |year=2019 |title=In Sunshine or in Shadow: How Boxing Brought Hope In The Troubles |location=New York |publisher=Simon & Schuster |page=50 |isbn=978-1471163135}}</ref> and also [[Bloody Sunday (1972)|Bloody Sunday]]. This then led to his attempts to join the IRA.<ref name="ap"/>


Storey left school when he was fifteen and went to work with his father selling fruit. At sixteen, he became a member of the IRA.<ref name="auto"/>
Storey left school when he was fifteen and went to work with his father selling fruit. At sixteen, he became a member of the IRA.<ref name="ap"/>


==Prison==
==Prison==
On 11 April 1973, his seventeenth birthday, he was [[Operation Demetrius|interned]] and held at [[RAF Long Kesh#Long Kesh Detention Centre|Long Kesh Detention Centre]].<ref name="bowyerbell"/><ref name="bowyerbell2">{{cite book | last = Bowyer Bell | first = J. | title = The Irish Troubles: A Generation of Violence, 1967-92 | publisher = [[Gill & MacMillan]] | year = 1993 | pages = 560–562 | isbn = 0-7171-2201-8}}</ref> He had been arrested 20 times previous to this but was too young for [[internment]]. In October 1974 he took part in the protest at Long Kesh against living conditions where internees set fire to the "cages" in which they were being held.<ref name="McRae3">{{cite book |last=McRae |first=Donald |author-link=Donald McRae (author) |year=2019 |title=In Sunshine or in Shadow: How Boxing Brought Hope In The Troubles |location=New York |publisher=Simon & Schuster |page=117 |isbn=978-1471163135}}</ref> He was released from internment in May 1975.<ref name="bowyerbell2"/> He was arrested on suspicion of a bombing at the Skyways Hotel in January 1976 and a kidnapping and murder in the [[Andersonstown]] district of Belfast in March 1976, but was acquitted by the judge at his trial.<ref name="bowyerbell"/> He was arrested leaving the courthouse and charged with a shooting-related incident.<ref name="ap"/><ref name="McRae2">{{cite book |last=McRae |first=Donald |author-link=Donald McRae (author) |year=2019 |title=In Sunshine or in Shadow: How Boxing Brought Hope In The Troubles |location=New York |publisher=Simon & Schuster |page=164 |isbn=978-1471163135}}</ref> He was released after the case could not be proved, only to be charged with shooting two soldiers in [[Springfield Road#Turf Lodge|Turf Lodge]].<ref name="McRae2"/> Those charges were dropped in December 1977.<ref name="McRae2"/> The same month he was arrested for the murder of a soldier in Turf Lodge, but the charges were also dropped.<ref name="bowyerbell2"/>
On his seventeenth birthday, he was interned and held in [[Long Kesh]] for two years. He had been arrested 20 times previous to this but was too young for internment. He was in the "Cages", as the [[Nissen hut]]s used to house internees were called, in October 1974 when republican prisoners burnt them down. He was released in 1975 but in 1976 was arrested again, charged with blowing up the Skyways Hotel. Held on remand for thirteen months, he was released but was arrested on the day of his trial leaving the court house and charged with a shooting-related incident.<ref name="auto"/>


As the authorities were unable to convict him, he was released in March 1977, but was arrested again that August, charged with the shooting of two British soldiers. The charges were dropped that December. Charged again in 1978 with shooting a soldier, he was placed on remand but was released in May 1979. Storey was later arrested in London and charged with conspiring to hijack a helicopter to help [[Brian Keenan (Irish republican)|Brian Keenan]] escape from [[Brixton Prison]], but was released in April 1981. That August he was arrested in possession of a rifle after a soldier was shot and sentenced to eighteen years' imprisonment.<ref name="auto"/>
In 1978 Storey was charged in relation to the wounding of a soldier in [[Lenadoon]], but was acquitted at trial due to errors in police procedure.<ref name="bowyerbell2"/><ref name="McRae2"/> On 14 December 1979, Storey was later arrested in [[Holland Park]], London, with three other IRA volunteers including [[Gerard Tuite]], and charged with conspiring to hijack a helicopter to help [[Brian Keenan (Irish republican)|Brian Keenan]] escape from [[Brixton Prison]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Bowyer Bell |first=J. |title=The IRA, 1968-2000: An Analysis of a Secret Army |location=London |publisher=Routledge |year=2000 |page=111 |isbn=978-0714681191}}</ref> Tuite escaped from the same prison prior to the trial,<ref>{{cite book |last=O'Donnell |first=Ruán |year=2015 |title=Special Category: The IRA in English Prisons Vol.2: 1978-85 |location=Newbridge, Ireland |publisher=[[Irish Academic Press]] |pages=186–187 |isbn=978-0-7165-3301-6}}</ref> and the other two IRA volunteers were convicted, but Storey was acquitted at the [[Old Bailey]] in April 1981.<ref name="bowyerbell"/> That August, after a soldier was shot, he was arrested in possession of a rifle and was convicted for the first time, being sentenced to eighteen years' imprisonment.<ref name="ap"/><ref name="bowyerbell2"/>


Storey was one of the leaders of the [[Maze Prison escape]] in 1983, when 38 republican prisoners broke out of the [[HM Prison Maze|H-Blocks]], the largest prison escape in British penal history and the largest peacetime prison escape in Europe.<ref name="bowyerbell"/><ref name="bowyerbell3"/> He was recaptured within an hour,<ref name="bowyerbell"/> and sentenced to an additional seven years imprisonment.<ref>{{cite book |last=Dunne |first=Derek |year=1988 |title=Out of the Maze: The True Story of the Biggest Jail Escape Since the War |location=Dublin |publisher=[[Gill & MacMillan]] |page=168 |isbn=978-0717116072}}</ref> Released in 1994, he was again arrested in 1996 and charged with having personal information about a British Army soldier, and [[Brian Hutton, Baron Hutton|Brian Hutton]], the [[Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland|Lord Chief Justice]].<ref name="McCaffrey">{{Cite news |last=McCaffrey |first=Barry |title='Key spymaster' a crucial Adams ally |url=http://www.nuzhound.com/articles/irish_news/arts2007/nov1_Storey_spymaster.php |newspaper=Irish News |date=3 November 2007 |access-date=7 July 2020 }}{{Dead link|date=October 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> At his trial at [[Crumlin Road Courthouse]] in July 1998, he was acquitted after his defence proved the personal information had previously been published in books and newspapers.<ref name="McCaffrey"/>
Storey was involved in the [[Maze Prison escape]] in 1983, when 38 republican prisoners broke out of the H-Blocks. Captured,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://archives.tcm.ie/businesspost/2002/10/13/story521096528.asp |title=Archived copy |accessdate=9 October 2006 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070310170042/http://archives.tcm.ie/businesspost/2002/10/13/story521096528.asp |archivedate=10 March 2007 }}</ref> he was given an additional seven years. Released in 1994, he was again arrested in 1996 and charged with having information on the [[Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales|Lord Chief Justice]].


==Post-prison==
==Post-prison==
Having spent over twenty years in prison, almost all of it on remand, his final release came in 1998, and he again became involved in developing republican politics and strategy,<ref name="auto"/> eventually becoming the Northern chairman of [[Sinn Féin]].
Having spent over twenty years in prison, much of it on remand, his final release was in 1998, and he again became involved in developing republican politics and strategy,<ref name="ap"/> eventually becoming the northern chairman of [[Sinn Féin]].<ref>{{cite book |last=de Bréadún |first=Deaglán |authorlink=Deaglán de Bréadún|year=2015 |title=Power Play: The Rise of Modern Sinn Féin |location=Newbridge, Ireland |publisher=Merrion Press |page=226 |isbn=978-1785370311}}</ref>


It is alleged that the March 2002 Castlereagh police station break-in was planned by Storey as the alleged [[IRA Director of Intelligence]]. Confidential records and files held in the [[Special Branch#United Kingdom|Special Branch]] offices were stolen during the raid. It is also alleged that a rogue Special Branch officer may have been involved. In both cases, Storey denied any involvement.<ref name="Moriarty" /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Cowan |first=Rosie |last2=Hopkins |first2=Nick |last3=Taylor |first3=Richard Norton |date=2002-06-22 |title=Castlereagh break-in an 'inside job' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2002/jun/22/northernireland.northernireland |access-date=2024-07-30 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Cowan |first=Rosie |last2=correspondent |first2=Ireland |date=2002-04-01 |title=Republicans held over raid at Castlereagh |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2002/apr/01/northernireland.rosiecowan |access-date=2024-07-30 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>
⚫
On 11 January 2005 [[Ulster Unionist Party|Ulster Unionist]] Member of Parliament for [[South Antrim (Assembly constituency)|South Antrim]] [[David Burnside]] told the [[British House of Commons]] under [[parliamentary privilege]] that Storey was head of intelligence for the IRA.<ref name="auto"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article413101.ece|title=The Times & the Sunday Times|work=The Times}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm200405/cmhansrd/vo050111/debtext/50111-16.htm|title=House of Commons Hansard Debates for 11 Jan 2005 (pt 16)|publisher=the-stationery-office.co.uk|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605025820/http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm200405/cmhansrd/vo050111/debtext/50111-16.htm|archivedate=5 June 2011|df=dmy-all}}</ref>


In October 2002, during [[Stormontgate]], a bag belonging to Storey containing secret documents was seized from the home of [[double agent]] [[Denis Donaldson]] during his arrest. The [[Police Service of Northern Ireland|PSNI]] had been attempting to arrest Storey in possession of the bag, but had failed to do so and arrested Donaldson instead.<ref name="Moriarty" />
On 9 September 2015, Storey was arrested and held for two days in connection with the killing of former IRA volunteer Kevin McGuigan the previous month. He was subsequently released without any charges, and Storey filed for unlawful arrest through his solicitor.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/bobby-storey-arrested-as-part-of-mcguigan-murder-investigation-1.2345453|title=Bobby Storey arrested as part of McGuigan murder investigation|date=9 September 2015|work=The Irish Times}}</ref>


⚫
On 11 January 2005 [[Ulster Unionist Party|Ulster Unionist]] [[Member of Parliament (United Kingdom)|Member of Parliament]] for [[South Antrim (UK Parliament constituency)|South Antrim]], [[David Burnside]], told the [[British House of Commons]] under [[parliamentary privilege]] that Storey was head of intelligence for the IRA.<ref name="ap" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm200405/cmhansrd/vo050111/debtext/50111-16.htm|title=House of Commons Hansard Debates for 11 Jan 2005 (pt 16)|publisher=the-stationery-office.co.uk|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605025820/http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm200405/cmhansrd/vo050111/debtext/50111-16.htm|archive-date=5 June 2011}}</ref>
⚫
==Death ==
Storey's death was announced on 21 June 2020, with Sinn Féin president [[Mary Lou McDonald]] calling him "a great republican" in her tribute.<ref>{{cite news |last1=O'Neill |first1=Julian |title=Republican Bobby Storey dies following illness |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-53129384 |accessdate=21 June 2020 |work=BBC News |date=21 June 2020}}</ref>


On 9 September 2015, Storey was arrested and held for two days in connection with the killing of former IRA volunteer Kevin McGuigan the previous month.<ref>{{cite news|last=Moriarty |first=Gerry|url=http://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/bobby-storey-arrested-as-part-of-mcguigan-murder-investigation-1.2345453|title=Bobby Storey arrested as part of McGuigan murder investigation|date=9 September 2015|newspaper=The Irish Times|access-date=27 August 2020}}</ref> He was subsequently released without any charges, and his solicitor [[John Finucane (Sinn Féin politician)|John Finucane]] stated Storey would be suing for [[False arrest|unlawful arrest]].<ref>{{cite news|first=Rachel |last=Flaherty |date=10 September 2015 |title=Bobby Storey released by police investigating McGuigan murder |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/crime-and-law/bobby-storey-released-by-police-investigating-mcguigan-murder-1.2346963 |newspaper=The Irish Times |access-date=27 August 2020}}</ref>
⚫
== Cultural References ==

⚫
In the 2017 film ''[[Maze (2017 film)|Maze]]'' dramatising the [[Maze Prison escape|1983 prison break]], directed by Stephen Burke, Storey was portrayed by Irish actor Cillian O'Sullivan.<ref>{{Citation|last=Burke|first=Stephen|title=Maze|date=2017-09-22|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5752606/|others=Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Barry Ward, Martin McCann|access-date=2018-08-04}}</ref>
⚫
==Death==
Storey died in [[Newcastle upon Tyne]], England on 21 June 2020 following an unsuccessful lung transplant surgery.<ref name=Moriarty/><ref>{{Cite news |last=Preston |first=Allan |title=Funeral of top IRA man Bobby Storey to be held next week |url=https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/northern-ireland/funeral-of-top-ira-man-bobby-storey-to-be-held-next-week-39316737.html |newspaper=Belfast Telegraph |date=25 June 2020 |access-date=5 July 2020}}</ref> Sinn Féin president [[Mary Lou McDonald]] described him as "a great republican" in her tribute.<ref>{{cite news |last1=O'Neill |first1=Julian |title=Republican Bobby Storey dies following illness |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-53129384 |access-date=21 June 2020 |work=BBC News |date=21 June 2020}}</ref> His funeral procession in Belfast on 30 June was attended by over 1,500 people including McDonald, [[Deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland|deputy First Minister]] [[Michelle O'Neill]], and former Sinn Féin president [[Gerry Adams]], but was criticised for breaking [[social distancing]] rules implemented in response to the [[COVID-19 pandemic in Northern Ireland|COVID-19 pandemic]] which, at the time operating in Northern Ireland, limited funeral numbers to no more than 30 mourners.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Moore |first=Aoife |date=3 July 2020 |title='I am very sorry': Mary Lou McDonald apologises for Bobby Storey funeral crowds |url=https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/ireland/i-am-very-sorry-mary-lou-mcdonald-apologises-to-families-unable-to-attend-funerals-after-bobby-storey-crowds-1009042.html |newspaper=Irish Examiner |access-date=5 July 2020}}</ref>

⚫
==Cultural references==
⚫
In the 2017 film ''[[Maze (2017 film)|Maze]]'' dramatising the [[Maze Prison escape|1983 prison break]], directed by [[Stephen Burke]], Storey was portrayed by Irish actor [[Cillian O'Sullivan]].<ref>{{Citation|last=Burke|first=Stephen|title=Maze|date=22 September 2017|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5752606/|others=Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Barry Ward, Martin McCann|access-date=4 August 2018}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Sheridan |first=Colette |date=16 March 2019 |title=Cork men set for film premiere on Paddy's Day |url=https://www.echolive.ie/corklives/Cork-men-set-for-film-premiere-on-Paddys-Day-1e7d84da-49fd-46eb-893c-6be9b4c1a5b4-ds |newspaper=[[The Echo (Cork newspaper)|The Echo]] |access-date=7 July 2020}}</ref>


==References==
==References==
Line 39: Line 66:


==External links==
==External links==
⚫
*[http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/issues/politics/docs/odoherty.htm#prologue The Trouble with Guns] – journalist [[Malachi O'Doherty]]'s account of a meeting with Storey in 1995
*[https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200405/cmhansrd/cm050111/debtext/50111-16.htm House of Commons Hansard Debates for 11 January 2005] – House of Commons debate containing allegations against Storey
⚫
*[http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/issues/politics/docs/odoherty.htm#prologue The Trouble with Guns] – journalist Malachi O'Doherty's account of a meeting with Storey in 1995
{{PIRA}}
{{PIRA}}

{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Storey, Bobby}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Storey, Bobby}}
[[Category:Escapees from British detention]]
[[Category:Escapees from British detention]]
[[Category:Irish escapees]]
[[Category:Irish escapees]]
[[Category:Irish republicans]]
[[Category:1956 births]]
[[Category:1956 births]]
[[Category:2020 deaths]]
[[Category:2020 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Belfast]]
[[Category:People acquitted of murder]]
[[Category:Paramilitaries from Belfast]]
[[Category:Place of birth missing]]
[[Category:Place of birth missing]]
[[Category:Provisional Irish Republican Army members]]
[[Category:Provisional Irish Republican Army members]]
[[Category:Republicans imprisoned during the Northern Ireland conflict]]

Latest revision as of 19:07, 13 September 2024

Bobby Storey
Storey in 2012
Birth nameRobert Storey
Born(1956-04-11)11 April 1956
Marrowbone, Belfast, Northern Ireland
Died21 June 2020(2020-06-21) (aged 64)
Newcastle upon Tyne, England[1]
Cause of deathUnsuccessful lung transplant[2]
Buried
Milltown Cemetery
ParamilitaryProvisional Irish Republican Army
Years of service1972–2000s
RankDirector of Intelligence (alleged)
UnitBelfast Brigade
Battles / warsThe Troubles

Robert Storey (11 April 1956 – 21 June 2020)[3][4] was a Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA) volunteer from Belfast, Northern Ireland. Prior to an 18-year conviction for possessing a rifle, he also spent time on remand for a variety of charges and in total served 20 years in prison. He also played a key role in the Maze Prison escape, the biggest prison break in British penal history.[3][5]

Early life

[edit]

The family was originally from the Marrowbone area, on the Oldpark Road in North Belfast. The family had to move when Storey was very young due to Ulster loyalist attacks on the district, moving to Manor Street, an interface area also in North Belfast. Storey's uncle was boxing trainer Gerry Storey and his father, also called Bobby, was involved in the defence of the area in the 1970s when Catholics were threatened by loyalists.[6]

Storey was one of four children. He had two brothers, Seamus and Brian, and a sister Geraldine.[6] Seamus and Bobby senior had been arrested after a raid on their home which uncovered a rifle and a pistol.[6] Bobby senior was later released but Seamus was charged.[6] Seamus escaped from Crumlin Road Gaol with eight other prisoners in 1971, they were dubbed the Crumlin Kangaroos.[6]

On his mother Peggy's side of the family there was also a history of republicanism, but Storey said "the dominant influences on" him "were the events that were happening around" him.[7] These included the McGurk's Bar bombing in the New Lodge, some of those killed being people who knew his family,[7][8] and also Bloody Sunday. This then led to his attempts to join the IRA.[7]

Storey left school when he was fifteen and went to work with his father selling fruit. At sixteen, he became a member of the IRA.[7]

Prison

[edit]

On 11 April 1973, his seventeenth birthday, he was interned and held at Long Kesh Detention Centre.[3][9] He had been arrested 20 times previous to this but was too young for internment. In October 1974 he took part in the protest at Long Kesh against living conditions where internees set fire to the "cages" in which they were being held.[10] He was released from internment in May 1975.[9] He was arrested on suspicion of a bombing at the Skyways Hotel in January 1976 and a kidnapping and murder in the Andersonstown district of Belfast in March 1976, but was acquitted by the judge at his trial.[3] He was arrested leaving the courthouse and charged with a shooting-related incident.[7][11] He was released after the case could not be proved, only to be charged with shooting two soldiers in Turf Lodge.[11] Those charges were dropped in December 1977.[11] The same month he was arrested for the murder of a soldier in Turf Lodge, but the charges were also dropped.[9]

In 1978 Storey was charged in relation to the wounding of a soldier in Lenadoon, but was acquitted at trial due to errors in police procedure.[9][11] On 14 December 1979, Storey was later arrested in Holland Park, London, with three other IRA volunteers including Gerard Tuite, and charged with conspiring to hijack a helicopter to help Brian Keenan escape from Brixton Prison.[12] Tuite escaped from the same prison prior to the trial,[13] and the other two IRA volunteers were convicted, but Storey was acquitted at the Old Bailey in April 1981.[3] That August, after a soldier was shot, he was arrested in possession of a rifle and was convicted for the first time, being sentenced to eighteen years' imprisonment.[7][9]

Storey was one of the leaders of the Maze Prison escape in 1983, when 38 republican prisoners broke out of the H-Blocks, the largest prison escape in British penal history and the largest peacetime prison escape in Europe.[3][5] He was recaptured within an hour,[3] and sentenced to an additional seven years imprisonment.[14] Released in 1994, he was again arrested in 1996 and charged with having personal information about a British Army soldier, and Brian Hutton, the Lord Chief Justice.[15] At his trial at Crumlin Road Courthouse in July 1998, he was acquitted after his defence proved the personal information had previously been published in books and newspapers.[15]

Post-prison

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Having spent over twenty years in prison, much of it on remand, his final release was in 1998, and he again became involved in developing republican politics and strategy,[7] eventually becoming the northern chairman of Sinn Féin.[16]

It is alleged that the March 2002 Castlereagh police station break-in was planned by Storey as the alleged IRA Director of Intelligence. Confidential records and files held in the Special Branch offices were stolen during the raid. It is also alleged that a rogue Special Branch officer may have been involved. In both cases, Storey denied any involvement.[4][17][18]

In October 2002, during Stormontgate, a bag belonging to Storey containing secret documents was seized from the home of double agent Denis Donaldson during his arrest. The PSNI had been attempting to arrest Storey in possession of the bag, but had failed to do so and arrested Donaldson instead.[4]

On 11 January 2005 Ulster Unionist Member of Parliament for South Antrim, David Burnside, told the British House of Commons under parliamentary privilege that Storey was head of intelligence for the IRA.[7][19]

On 9 September 2015, Storey was arrested and held for two days in connection with the killing of former IRA volunteer Kevin McGuigan the previous month.[20] He was subsequently released without any charges, and his solicitor John Finucane stated Storey would be suing for unlawful arrest.[21]

Death

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Storey died in Newcastle upon Tyne, England on 21 June 2020 following an unsuccessful lung transplant surgery.[4][22] Sinn Féin president Mary Lou McDonald described him as "a great republican" in her tribute.[23] His funeral procession in Belfast on 30 June was attended by over 1,500 people including McDonald, deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill, and former Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams, but was criticised for breaking social distancing rules implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic which, at the time operating in Northern Ireland, limited funeral numbers to no more than 30 mourners.[24]

Cultural references

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In the 2017 film Maze dramatising the 1983 prison break, directed by Stephen Burke, Storey was portrayed by Irish actor Cillian O'Sullivan.[25][26]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Body of leading IRA figure Bobby Storey returns home for funeral". belfasttelegraph. Retrieved 14 September 2022. Mr Storey (64), who died in Newcastle-Upon-Tyne
  2. ^ "Body of leading IRA figure Bobby Storey returns home for funeral". BelfastTelegraph.co.uk. 26 June 2020. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Bowyer Bell, J. (2017). The Dynamics of the Armed Struggle. London: Routledge. pp. 81–83. ISBN 978-0714644226.
  4. ^ a b c d Moriarty, Gerry (30 June 2020). "Bobby Storey: The IRA's planner and enforcer who stayed in the shadows". Irish Times. Retrieved 1 July 2020.
  5. ^ a b Bowyer Bell, J. (1997). The Secret Army: The IRA. Piscataway, NJ: Transaction Publishers. p. 543. ISBN 1-56000-901-2.
  6. ^ a b c d e McRae, Donald (2019). In Sunshine or in Shadow: How Boxing Brought Hope In The Troubles. New York: Simon & Schuster. pp. 44–45. ISBN 978-1471163135.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h "'Big Bobby': Arrests, interrogations, imprisonment and struggle - the 'Storey' of his life". An Phoblacht. 18 December 2008. Retrieved 8 July 2020.
  8. ^ McRae, Donald (2019). In Sunshine or in Shadow: How Boxing Brought Hope In The Troubles. New York: Simon & Schuster. p. 50. ISBN 978-1471163135.
  9. ^ a b c d e Bowyer Bell, J. (1993). The Irish Troubles: A Generation of Violence, 1967-92. Gill & MacMillan. pp. 560–562. ISBN 0-7171-2201-8.
  10. ^ McRae, Donald (2019). In Sunshine or in Shadow: How Boxing Brought Hope In The Troubles. New York: Simon & Schuster. p. 117. ISBN 978-1471163135.
  11. ^ a b c d McRae, Donald (2019). In Sunshine or in Shadow: How Boxing Brought Hope In The Troubles. New York: Simon & Schuster. p. 164. ISBN 978-1471163135.
  12. ^ Bowyer Bell, J. (2000). The IRA, 1968-2000: An Analysis of a Secret Army. London: Routledge. p. 111. ISBN 978-0714681191.
  13. ^ O'Donnell, Ruán (2015). Special Category: The IRA in English Prisons Vol.2: 1978-85. Newbridge, Ireland: Irish Academic Press. pp. 186–187. ISBN 978-0-7165-3301-6.
  14. ^ Dunne, Derek (1988). Out of the Maze: The True Story of the Biggest Jail Escape Since the War. Dublin: Gill & MacMillan. p. 168. ISBN 978-0717116072.
  15. ^ a b McCaffrey, Barry (3 November 2007). "'Key spymaster' a crucial Adams ally". Irish News. Retrieved 7 July 2020.[permanent dead link‍]
  16. ^ de Bréadún, Deaglán (2015). Power Play: The Rise of Modern Sinn Féin. Newbridge, Ireland: Merrion Press. p. 226. ISBN 978-1785370311.
  17. ^ Cowan, Rosie; Hopkins, Nick; Taylor, Richard Norton (22 June 2002). "Castlereagh break-in an 'inside job'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  18. ^ Cowan, Rosie; correspondent, Ireland (1 April 2002). "Republicans held over raid at Castlereagh". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 30 July 2024. {{cite news}}: |last2= has generic name (help)
  19. ^ "House of Commons Hansard Debates for 11 Jan 2005 (pt 16)". the-stationery-office.co.uk. Archived from the original on 5 June 2011.
  20. ^ Moriarty, Gerry (9 September 2015). "Bobby Storey arrested as part of McGuigan murder investigation". The Irish Times. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
  21. ^ Flaherty, Rachel (10 September 2015). "Bobby Storey released by police investigating McGuigan murder". The Irish Times. Retrieved 27 August 2020.
  22. ^ Preston, Allan (25 June 2020). "Funeral of top IRA man Bobby Storey to be held next week". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
  23. ^ O'Neill, Julian (21 June 2020). "Republican Bobby Storey dies following illness". BBC News. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  24. ^ Moore, Aoife (3 July 2020). "'I am very sorry': Mary Lou McDonald apologises for Bobby Storey funeral crowds". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
  25. ^ Burke, Stephen (22 September 2017), Maze, Tom Vaughan-Lawlor, Barry Ward, Martin McCann, retrieved 4 August 2018
  26. ^ Sheridan, Colette (16 March 2019). "Cork men set for film premiere on Paddy's Day". The Echo. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
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