Soldier F, the former British soldier accused of killing Jim Wray, 22, and William McKinney, 26, during Derry’s Bloody Sunday in 1972, will face trial next year, Justice Fowler ordered in the Belfast Crown Court today, Friday, December 6.
Soldier F, who is reportedly in his mid-70s, pleaded not guilty to the January 3 0, 1972 murders of Wray and McKinney on Friday.
He also pleaded not guilty to the attempted murders on Bloody Sunday of five other people.
Soldier F, who cannot be identified, spoke from behind a full-length curtain in court on Friday.
In June, lawyers for Soldier F applied to have the case against their client dismissed ahead of his trial, claiming that there was insufficient evidence.
On Friday, however, Justice Fowler refused the defence application, ruling that statements from the time by two other soldiers provided "a sufficiency of evidence" to continue.
However, Justice Fowler did grant a defence application for anonymity and screening provisions applied to Solider F to be extended.
According to the PA, Soldier F's defence team had earlier claimed he would be a “prized target” for dissident republicans if his identity were made public.
A date for trial is set to be fixed at a further review hearing on January 24.
“We’ll try to get a trial as soon as possible,” Justice Fowler said in court on Friday.
“We are very pleased that Soldier F’s application was refused and that he will now proceed, rightly, to trial," Mickey McKinney, brother of victim William McKinney, said after the hearing on Friday in a statement issued by Belfast-based law firm Madden & Finucane.
"Soldier F is now one step closer to a sentence of life imprisonment," he continued.
“We are disappointed, however, that the trial judge has granted his application for anonymity and screening.
“It is difficult for us to reconcile the fact that anyone with an interest in the events of Bloody Sunday has been aware of Soldier F’s true identity and his appearance for many years.
“We all saw him give evidence in open court for two days in 2003.
“We do not consider that Soldier F truly believes that he is under threat from anyone, and is merely using the cloak of anonymity and screening as a curtain of shame because of his murderous actions in 1972.
“The events of Bloody Sunday took place 53 years ago next month. It is imperative that the court does not tolerate any more delay and that this trial proceeds as a matter of urgency.
“This is a day when we remember all the victims of the British Army in the north of Ireland.”
Chairperson of the Bloody Sunday Trust/Museum of Free Derry Tony Doherty, whose father Patrick Doherty was murdered on Bloody Sunday, was also in court on Friday.
"Long is the road to justice," he said in a post on X afterward.
This morning I sat less than 40 feet away from Soldier F, the man who Lord Saville said killed my father without fear or panic, as he was committed to trial as early as January. Long is the road to justice.
— Tony Doherty (@tonydutchdoc) December 6, 2024
Colum Eastwood, the former head of the SDLP and MP for Foyle, welcomed Friday's news that Soldier F will face trial.
Welcome today’s ruling that ‘Soldier F’ must stand trial for the murders of James Wray and William McKinney alongside 5 charges of attempted murder after he tried to have all charges dismissed.
Progress today but still tough for the families. We’re with them until the end. pic.twitter.com/FahKEPSnMB
— Colum Eastwood (@columeastwood) December 6, 2024
Soldier F is the only British soldier to face prosecution over the events of Bloody Sunday, January 30, 1972, when British paratroopers opened fire on a peaceful protest organized by the Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association which was protesting the poor treatment of Catholics in Northern Ireland.
13 people were killed on the day, while another person died months later after being shot in the leg.
In March 2019, Northern Ireland's Public Prosecution Service (PPS) announced that Soldier F would be prosecuted for the murders of Jim Wray and William McKinney.
In 2021, however, the PPS dropped the case against Soldier F after a separate trial collapsed against two other former British soldiers.
However, the High Court overruled the decision following a legal challenge from the relatives of Bloody Sunday victims, prompting the PPS to announce in September 2022 that it would recommence proceedings against Soldier F.
In December 2023, District Judge Ted Magill said he didn't "require any more time" and that he was returning Soldier F for trial on all charges.
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