Murdered mother-of-three was having an affair with a fellow British agent

A IRA informer killed more than 30 years ago was having an affair with a senior republican who was also working for British intelligence, it’s claimed in a new book.

Veteran Troubles journalist Martin Dillon has also suggested Stakeknife was a “British intelligence project” rather than a single individual.

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The sensational claims are set out in Mr Dillon’s new book ‘The Sorrow and the Loss – The Tragic Shadow Cast by the Troubles on the Lives of Women’.

Caroline Moreland (34) was found near Roslea, Co Fermanagh, in July 1994 – just weeks before the IRA’s historic ceasefire in August that year.

The mother-of-three was shot three times in the head and her body dumped on a roadside close to the border.

In 2003 west Belfast man Freddie Scappaticci, a former commander of the IRA’s Internal Security Unit (ISU), was identified as the agent ‘Stakeknife’ – a term first used by deceased journalist Liam Clarke.

While it was previously known Scappaticci worked for the British army’s Force Research Unit (FRU), documents suppressed by MI5 until recently confirm he was instructed by the agency via his military handlers.

The ISU, also known as the ‘Nutting Squad’, was responsible for hunting down and killing informers.

It is believed Scappaticci’s involvement with the ISU ended around 1990.

Caroline Mooreland was abducted and killed by the IRA unit four years later.

While Operation Kenova, set up to investigate the activities of Stakeknife, has considered the case of Ms Mooreland, it has never been explained why the killing was included in its caseload.

Mr Dillon believes that the moniker Stakeknife “was part of a clever ploy”.

“By making Scappaticci the one and only Stakeknife, the FRU leadership was able to deflect attention from its other Stakeknife agents embedded in the IRA’s ISU for more than a decade,” he said.

“This issue impacts the truth about the murder of Caroline in ways I could never have imagined until I began writing this book.”

He said that after being taken by the IRA, Ms Mooreland was held in the Andersonstown area of west Belfast before being moved to the border within 48 hours.

Under IRA interrogation she admitted to being an informer.

The author said she was arrested by police in 1992 and later released after another informer had “had marked her for his (RUC) Branch handlers as someone who could be recruited to operate at a high level within the IRA’s Belfast Brigade”.

Arrested again in 1994 the west Belfast woman broke under pressure and agreed to work for Special Branch after being threatened that she would go to jail and lose her children.

The author says it is unclear how within months the IRA became aware she was working for the British.

Mr Dillon said that on release from RUC custody, Ms Mooreland was questioned by members of the ISU but had been briefed by Special Branch on how to respond.

Four months later she was abducted and handed over to the ISU.

Her body was found 15 days later.

Mr Dillon says he has been told the order to kill Ms Mooreland – just weeks before the ceasefire – would have been “handled” by former Sinn Féin deputy first minister Martin McGuinness due to “the politics of the time”.

Mr Dillon also believes Ms Mooreland had a “secret lover” who was a “very senior IRA figure”.

The seasoned journalist poses the question: “Could this man have been responsible for her death?”

“The fact that Caroline had a secret lover, one never mentioned in all the stories about her, alters the trajectory of her demise,” Mr Dillon suggests.

“This lover’s identity is known to British intelligence.

“He was another Stakeknife agent.

“By encouraging the media to make Scappaticci the scapegoat in all the Stakeknife murders, British intelligence has been able to hide and protect all its other killers within the IRA’s internal security apparatus, including Caroline’s lover.”

Mr Dillon said that while the man cannot be named for legal reasons “he had the motivation to kill Caroline if she had learned during their secret love affair that he was a double agent”.

Mr Dillon adds there “was always something highly suspicious about the IRA’s decision to murder Caroline”.

“She was a perfect example of a victim of the dirty war,” he said.

“In this case, the IRA needed to protect one of its own who was at the apex of decision-making at a critical time in the final stages of the peace process.”

Mr Dillon also questions why no attempt was made by the British to rescue Ms Mooreland.

“The answer, according to a retired British intelligence source, was that ‘orders came down from the top not to rock the boat’.

“Talks with IRA leaders were at a delicate stage and it was ‘imperative’ that no one jeopardised them.

“A rescue operation might have led to a gun battle and the deaths of IRA personnel.

“Such a scenario had the potential to encourage the IRA rank and file to reject any forthcoming deal with Britain.”

The author writes that a source believes the order not to intervene didn’t come from MI5.

“It came from above, as far up the Intelligence chain as it gets, and it applied to everyone, including MI5, Special Branch and Military Intelligence,” the source said.

“I suspect the matter of this poor lady was considered the IRA’s business and not ours.”

Mr Dillon ponders how far up the ladder the ladder Ms Mooreland’s case went.

“When one thinks of the top of the British intelligence chain, one must consider the Prime Minister’s Office, their Director of Intelligence and a joint intelligence committee representing the various branches, including MI5 and MI6 as well as Military Intelligence,” he said.

Operation Kenova was contacted.

‘The Sorrow and the Loss – The Tragic Shadow Cast by the Troubles on the Lives of Women’ by Merrion Press is available now.