Clik here to view.
Belfast harbour
Cops rumbled a gun-running operation through Belfast docks on Friday – completely by accident, we can reveal.
We have learnt a box of guns and ammunition was discovered on Friday night strapped to the bottom of a lorry trailer that had just left Belfast harbour.
Sources have said they believe the guns were destined for loyalists in Co. Armagh.
“These guns have only been discovered so it’s too early to be certain who was bringing them in,” said a security source.
“It could be dissidents but it’s more likely that they were being brought in by a loyalist terror group – simply because their final destination was Portadown.”
Two machine guns, two magazines and two silencers had been placed in the box which had been attached to the bottom of the trailer by four heavy-duty magnets.
Cops swooped on a haulage yard in Newtownabbey after the trailer was selected to be subjected to a company PSV pre-check.
Unsuspecting mechanics discovered the weapons, one of which was believed to be a Uzi-style machine gun, after the trailer was put on a raised platform so the brakes could be examined.
The 40ft trailer, which was empty at the time, is believed to have come off a boat from Scotland yesterday afternoon at around 2pm.
Mechanics called in the PSNI immediately and forensic officers stayed in the yard until midnight.
A police spokesperson said: “Police are investigating the discovery of a suspicious item from commercial premises in the Antrim Road area of Newtownabbey on Friday afternoon.”
We have learned the trailer was destined to be driven to the yard of a major haulage firm in Portadown, Co. Armagh.
“The trailer was meant to go straight down to Portadown – it wasn’t meant to go to the yard in Newtownabbey,” a source told the Sunday World.
“It was flagged up on a computer that it was due its PSV check soon so it was put on the ramp to get a pre-check to make sure the brakes were working properly.
“The mechanics found the box and thought initially that it was some kind of tracking device.
“They took it off with a crow bar and then they got a huge shock when they opened it.”
Over 15 cops swooped on the haulage yard at around 3pm.
“The feeling is this is not the first time this method has been used to smuggle in guns,” said a source. “The feeling is this could have been going on for ages. It was very well organised and would have been untraceable if it hadn’t been stopped for checks.”
Serious Crime officers from the PSNI travelled to Portadown yesterday to interview the boss of the haulage firm and question the driver who was supposed to drive the trailer from Belfast.
Security sources have revealed the police are delighted at the ‘lucky’ discovery.
“It’s obviously not a very big haul but it's believed to be a very significant find,” said the source.
“They think this has been going on for a while and now they have a chance of finding out who the guns were going to and where they were coming from.”