Protesters Block Police As Gerry Adams Freed

Protesters Block Police As Gerry Adams Freed
Loyalists gather outside a police station as the Sinn Fein leader is freed by detectives investigating a notorious IRA murder.

Loyalists have blocked roads outside a police station in Northern Ireland in an attempt to stop officers releasing Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams.

Mr Adams, 65, was freed from custody after being questioned for four days by police investigating a notorious IRA murder dating back to 1972.

Dozens of protesters holding flags and placards stood outside Antrim police station bearing messages such as "Justice for Victims".

Armoured Land Rovers, one thought to be containing Mr Adams, were prevented from leaving the front gate as Loyalists sat in the road chanting "we shall not be moved".

Police in riot gear stood guard as the sit-down protest continued.

While that was going on, Mr Adams left the police station by the back gate in an another armoured police vehicle.

He is expected to hold a news conference in west Belfast later this evening.

Earlier, the Police Service of Northern Ireland announced Mr Adams' release in a tweet and said a file will be sent to the Public Prosecution Service, which will decide whether there is a case to answer.

He had spent four days being questioned by detectives about the murder of mother-of-10 Jean McConville, who was snatched from her home in front of her children.

On Friday, officers were granted another 48 hours to quiz the republican party leader at Antrim police station.

They had to charge him or release him by 8pm tonight.

Mr Adams, 65, had been questioned for up to 17 hours a day, Sky News understands.

He vehemently denies allegations that he ordered the widow's murder.

No one has ever been charged with the 37-year-old's killing.

Her body was discovered in 2003 on a beach 50 miles from her home.

The decision on whether to charge Mr Adams would normally rest with the region's Director of Public Prosecutions Barra McGrory QC.

But he is to delegate the case to another senior PPS official, as he has previously acted as Mr Adams' lawyer.

Mr Adams' arrest has led to a growing political row, with Northern Ireland's First Minister Peter Robinson accusing Sinn Fein of attempting to blackmail police.

The party had warned it would review its support for policing if Mr Adams was charged.

Mr Robinson said: "The PSNI must not be the subject of republican bully boy tactics."

Senior Sinn Fein member Gerry Kelly told reporters outside Antrim police station he had seen Mr Adams and he was being treated well.

"Like myself and all the members of Sinn Fein, he believes that the timing of this was political, that the extension of it was political and he's worried about the damage that it might be doing to the image of policing as well and that it's been mishandled in that type of fashion," he said.

http://news.sky.com/story/1254930/protesters-block-police-as-gerry-adams-freed

The Director of Public Prosecutions used to be his lawyer? It seems they are not going to charge him at the moment. Hell of a situation, damned if they do and damned if they don't. If he did it they most definitely should charge him, but it's going cause a total uprising by Sinn Fein, so they obviously want to make sure they have all their ducks in a row first.