Jon Boutcher ‘shares frustrations’ over lack of Operation Kenova prosecutions

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Thursday, 7 March 2024 16:46

The former head of a major investigation into the Army’s top agent in Northern Ireland during the Troubles has indicates he shares frustrations that no prosecutions were pursued.

Jon Boutcher, who is now Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland, previously led Operation Kenova, which probed the activities of the agent Stakeknife within the Provisional IRA.

Stakeknife was part of the IRA’s internal security unit, and Kenova examined crimes such as murder and torture and the role played by the security services, including MI5.

The agent was widely believed to be west Belfast man Freddie Scappaticci, who was in his 70s when he died last year.

Last week the Public Prosecution Service announced that no prosecutions would be pursued after consideration of the last batch of files from the investigation.