All four deny that they arranged, managed or assisted in arranging or managing a meeting in support of a proscribed organisation, namely the IRA, on dates between February 28, 2023 and April 11, 2023
Four men went on trial today accused of charges linked to a dissident republican Easter commemoration parade in Derry over two years ago.
Three of the defendants are from Derry: Thomas Ashe Mellon (49), of Glendermott Road, Jason Lee Ceulemans (53) of Creevagh Heights, Patrick Anthony Gallagher (33), of Raferty Close along with Stephen Martin Murney (41) of Derrybeg Terrace in Newry, Co Down.
All four deny that they arranged, managed or assisted in arranging or managing a meeting in support of a proscribed organisation, namely the IRA, on dates between February 28, 2023 and April 11, 2023.
They further deny a charge of addressing a meeting for the purpose of encouraging support for the IRA.
Opening the case at Belfast Crown Court, a senior prosecution KC told the non-jury Diplock-style trial that on Easter Monday, April 10, 2023, an unnotified parade set off from Central Drive in Creggan to walk the half mile journey to the City Cemetery.
The parade was being observed by a number of aerial PSNI platforms. He said that at 2.05 pm footage showed Ceulemans entering a storage container at the rear of the shops.
“Masked males take flags from the storage and an unmasked Ceulemans walks out of the container carrying two flags that he places against the rear shop wall,” said the senior prosecutor.
Judge Gordon Kerr KC heard crowds were gathering in Central Drive waiting for the parade to begin.
“Ceulemans is clearly involved in the organisation of what is to occur. Patrick Gallagher is noted to be in the area, engaging with the crowd.”
The colour party – dressed in military style clothing wearing sunglasses and black berets – is seen to gather up in a rear alley way. At 2:13 pm the colour party sets off with the flags left by Ceulemans and march past crowds at Creggan shops.
“Stephen Murney and Patrick Gallagher were standing in front of the crowd, Gallagher clapping with Murney capturing the images on his phone,” said the prosecution KC.
“Ceulemans is at the front of the colour party and is noted to be wearing an earpiece and he walked with them. Murney and Gallagher were at the rear of the colour party.”
The court heard that as the parade reached Linsfort Drive it stopped and a PSNI land rover was repeatedly attacked by masked youths with petrol bombs and masonry before it retreated.
“YouTube recorded the colour party at a standstill as the disorder took place, consistent with this aspect being planned. None of those present, in particular Ceulemans, who appeared to be leading this part of the orchestrated event, remonstrated with the young persons who were gathered around the petrol bombs in an attempt to prevent the attack on police.
“It appears that the attack was ‘part and parcel’ of events that afternoon.”
At 2.26 pm, Ceulemans enters the cemetery followed by Gallagher and Murney. The colour party then enters the cemetery.
“As they proceeded, a male with a number of bags made his way to the rear of the toilet block which appeared to be guarded by masked individuals with the republican plot a short distance away,” said the senior counsel.
“Red crates were placed at the pillar of one of the gates and two masked youths appeared to be carrying petrol bombs.”
The toilet block camera captured these moments before two attempts were made to spray paint the lense.
Judge Kerr heard that Gallagher performed a ‘master of ceremonies’ after the colour party came to a halt at the republican plot.
He invited the ‘Derry Brigade Irish Republican Army’ to come forward and lay a wreath with Ceulemans and Murney standing behind him. Gallagher introduced Ceulemans as a “former republican prisoner” and he read a statement on behalf of republican prisoners.
He introduced Murney as a ‘Leading Newry Republican’ and invited him to give the oration.
At the end of his oration, and quoting Maire Drumm, he said: “It isn’t enough to shout up the IRA. The important thing is to join the IRA.”
Gallagher asked the crowd to stay around to help the colour party “disperse peacefully”.
“This led to a number of persons raising large umbrellas (it was a sunny day) and shielding the colour party from view,” said the prosecutor.
“The colour party moved off, under the cover of umbrellas, to the toilet block.”
At the rear of the toilet block, the colour party changed its clothes which were then put on a lit fire. The cemetery gates remained closed until the colour party had disposed of its clothing.
On Tuesday, April 11, 2023, police conducted a search of the cemetery and found four viable pipe bombs in a waste bin beside the toilet block.
All four defendants were subsequently arrested for questioning. Murney’s phone was recovered and messages were found between him and Ashe Mellon surrounding his speech.
Murney sent the following: “Before the Maire Drumm quote…I have a message for the British occupiers, their paramilitary police and their entire establishment…So long as you continue to oppress us, you will meet with the enecapable (sic) consequences.”
Ceulemans sent Mellon a message stating: “I’ll have Murney’s speech done by tomorrow night and ready for you to bastardise.” Mellon replied with a thumbs up emoji.
When Ashe Mellon was asked by police if he assisted in drafting speeches for the Easter Monday commemoration, his solicitor provided a statement, stating: “I, Thomas Ashe Mellon, would like to make it clear that I absolutely deny any involvement in the offences with which I have been arrested for.”
Said the senior prosecutor: “It is accepted that Mellon was not present on April 10. However, we say he played a fundamental role in the organisation and arrangements of the meetings from the phone material.
“We further say that it is clear Mellon was influential in the preparation and management of the speeches. It is clear he had a key role in drafting and approving the speeches of Murney and Ceulemans. Mellon asks Gallagher to send through the format for the event and then instructs him to put a message in the ‘the Saoradh Exc Chat’ about the “boards and posters to be out asap”.
“Mellon also commented that the band better not let them down and he also had a role in accessing the podium to be used at the event. It is clear from the approved speech of Murney that Mellon knew this was to encourage support for the IRA or to further its activities.”
He added: “On any view this was a highly choreographed event. It was staged and stylised and it involved planned violence.
“On one reasonable view from start to finish it was a planned propaganda exercise for the IRA. The fact that journalists were permitted to remain was to enable a demonstration of intent and a showing off that the IRA are in control of this area in Derry.”
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