Man charged with McCartney murder
A man is to be charged with the murder of Robert McCartney, police in Belfast said tonight.
He is due to appear before a magistrate in the city tomorrow.
Father-of-two Mr McCartney, 33, was beaten and stabbed after being dragged from Magennis’s bar near the Markets district on January 30.
Three members of the IRA who were allegedly involved were later expelled from the organisation.
Police also said tonight a second man would be charged with the attempted murder of a man who was with Mr McCartney in the bar on the night of the murder. Brendan Devine was left critically injured.
The two men due in court tomorrow are aged 36 and 49. One was arrested in Birmingham and the second in Belfast.
Mr McCartney’s sister Catherine said tonight she was pleased with the breakthrough in the police investigation.
She said: “We hope it will lead to further arrests because there were more than two people involved. We still have a long way to go in terms of a trial and convictions.”
