Omagh bomb accused remanded in custody

Extradition proceedings against the convicted Real IRA member are already well advanced in Dublin and his entry into the UK represented a breach of his bail conditions.

Sitting at Laganside courts, Belfast recorder Tom Burgess said he could not proceed with the legal process until he found out whether judges in Lithuania wanted the case to be heard in the North or the Republic.

He remanded Campbell, from Upper Faughart, Dundalk, in custody until Friday, though pledged to bring the hearing forward if he got a quick response from the Baltic republic.

Mr Burgess acknowledged that starting fresh extradition proceedings in the North when the process was already six months down the line in Dublin may not be the best option.

"There must be a strong argument to let that process (in Dublin) take precedence over any process initiated by me," he said.

However, he said it was incumbent on him to establish the views of the Lithuanians before making a ruling.

"Namely, whether they think it should be dealt with in Dublin or Belfast," he added.

The authorities in Lithuania are seeking Campbell in connection with a foiled plot to bring arms and explosives into Ireland two years ago.

It is alleged he and three other men, one of whom is his brother Michael, conspired in 2006 and 2007 to obtain the weapons cache for the Real IRA.

Campbell, who appeared in the dock wearing a blue polo shirt and jeans and spoke only to confirm his name, is one of five men being sued in a civil action by families of the victims of the Omagh bomb for their alleged part in the 1998 atrocity.

He was initially arrested in Bessbrook on Friday under UK terror legislation and held in the specialist police interrogation suite in Antrim. He was released without charge yesterday but immediately rearrested under the terms of the European warrant issued by the Lithuanian state last year.

His lawyer, Peter Corrigan, told the court he was only in the North to take his wife to work. He said she could not drive herself because she had recently broken her wrist.

Representing the Lithuanian authorities, barrister Steven Ritchie objected to bail being granted.

He alleged Campbell remained a senior figure in the Real IRA and there was a high likelihood he would not reappear for any subsequent hearings north of the border.

“He is considered to be a leading member of the dissident republican paramilitary group for which currently the threat risk is categorised as severe in Northern Ireland,” he said.

The lawyer said the seriousness of the charges against him in the Baltic state - namely attempting to obtain guns, ammunition and bomb-making parts – was also reason to keep him in custody.

“This (the alleged plot) was being done, it is alleged, to provide support for the terrorist grouping known as the Real Irish Republican Army,” he added.

However, Campbell’s lawyer, Mr Corrigan, said there was no question his client had driven into the North in an attempt to try to evade the extradition process.

He pointed out that since his arrest in the Republic in January, he had complied with his bail conditions, including reporting to gardaí daily and attending court hearings in Dublin. He had also put up €50,000 in assurity, the lawyer added.

“When he was arrested he was actually on his way back to the Republic of Ireland,” he said.

Mr Corrigan urged the judge to let his client return to the Republic so extradition process there could run its course.

He noted that other suspects had been arrested in Lithuania and their trials could not get under way until it had been established whether Campbell would be extradited.

Recorder Burgess said he did not envisage a delay in obtaining the information he required from Lithuania to reach a decision.

“I’m talking about for as long at it takes me to get a reply back from Vilnius, which I suspect might be overnight,” he said.

Meanwhile, the verdict in the multimillion-pound legal action by relatives of some of the 29 people killed in the Omagh bomb is due to be delivered by Mr Justice Morgan on June 8.