A body discovered in remote bogland in Ireland has been identified as an IRA victim murdered and secretly buried 36 years ago.
Brendan Megraw was abducted from his home in Belfast and killed by the IRA in April 1978.
The 23-year-old was one of 16 victims known as "the disappeared" who vanished without trace during the conflict in Northern Ireland.
After a series of unsuccessful searches over the years, investigators following a new lead discovered the remains in Oristown Bog in County Meath in October.
"The results positively indicate that the remains found are those of Brendan Megraw," the Independent Commission for the Location of Victims' Remains (ICLVR) said after DNA tests.
Megraw had been recently married and was expecting the birth of his daughter when he was murdered.
His family were not told by the IRA until 1999 that he had been killed and secretly buried.
The IRA claimed that he had confessed to being a British "agent provocateur."
Sean Megraw, a brother of the victim, welcomed the formal identification.
"It's great to get it confirmed so we can start making final arrangements," he told AFP.
Reflecting on the circumstances and location of his brother's death, Sean said Brendan's final moments "must have been grim."
"It was probably just as barbaric as... journalists and people being killed out in Iraq and places like that," he said.
Over the past 15 years, the ICLVR has worked to help find the disappeared. The remains of 10 of the 16 have been recovered.
About 3000 people were killed in the three decades of sectarian bombings and shootings in Northern Ireland before an historic peace agreement in 1998.
AFP
source: newshub archive
