The Police Ombudsman is set to release a long-awaited report into the murder of a West Belfast teen, who was killed by loyalist paramilitaries as the British Army looked on.
17-year-old Damien Walsh was murdered by the UFF at the Dairy Farm shopping centre on March 25, 1993, as he worked at a fuel depot.
In 2010, a Historical Enquiries Team (HET) report found that undercover soldiers watched as he was murdered by loyalists.
The HET said soldiers were watching the Dairy Farm because it had been frequented by the IRA and that they had information that bomb making materials were being stored there.
The report found Damien had not been involved in paramilitary activity and was not the UFF's intended target.
Damien's case has been on the Police Ombudsman's books since 2004 and, having faced a number of setbacks, is the longest-running investigation by Ombudsman's Office.
In 2019, the PSNI was forced to apologise after finding previously undisclosed material relating to the case.
The find also related to files involving the 1992 Sean Graham's Bookmaker's massacre.
Police claimed the find of previously undisclosed material coincided with an IT upgrade.
The PSNI issued an apology and said it they would be reviewing its IT systems for disclosing information after it emerged that covert files relating to legacy civil cases had not been shared with the Police Ombudsman.
Today (Thursday), the Police Ombudsman, Marie Anderson, will publish a report into Damien's murder. The Walsh family will mark the occasion with a rally at Damien's commemorative plaque at the Dairy Farm at 10am.
Looking forward to the report's publication, Damien's mother, Marian Walsh, said: "I first went to the Ombudsman at the end of 2003, so that's almost 18 years ago, and all that time I've been waiting on them coming back to me with the report. I never thought it would take that long.
"I'm relieved that they've said they're giving it to me this time, but at other times too they've said that it was imminent and then it didn't happen, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I actually get it this time - it looks like I will."
The publication of the Ombudsman's report will come a week after the Secretary of State, Brandon Lewis, outlined plans to introduce an amnesty for Troubles-related killings.
If implemented, the plan would see a statute of limitations introduced for all legacy cases prior to 1998.
Mrs Walsh has vowed to continue her fight for justice in the face of the British Government's plans to shield Damien's killers and state actors who colluded with them from prosecution.
"The Ombudsman's report is only the beginning of a long process for me, because I want an independent inquiry, regardless of what's in the report, I want another inquest," Marian went on. "I want to prosecute the people higher up in what was the RUC and the British Army. They should be prosecuted, they should be held responsible for what they did, and there are so many other families like us."
Paul Butler from Relatives for Justice said: "We've been supporting Marian and her family from the outset, and the report has spanned four Ombudsmen – Nuala O'Loan, Al Hutchinson, Michael Maguire and now Marie Anderson – so it's totally unacceptable that she has had to wait this long to find out how her son was killed.
"Hopefully Marian will get a lot of answers from the Ombudsman on Thursday, but the legacy side of the Ombudsman's Office is one of the things the British Government wants to shut down as part of their proposals. Marian has an investigation into Damien's killing, but that might be denied to other families in the future."
Sinn Féin Councillor Stephen Magennis, a friend of Damien Walsh's, said: "Damien's is one of the worst cases of collusion between the so-called security forces and loyalists.
"I am asking people to support the Walsh family and attend the rally at 10am on Thursday morning at Damien's plaque at the Dairy Farm."
Mrs Walsh added: "The rally is open to everybody and it is to highlight Damien's case, and also to show solidarity among the people who are bereaved."
