I never met Bobby Storey. In fact I don’t think I even glimpsed him in real life. But his occasional appearances on TV and stories about him, once seen or heard, were unforgettable.
Most recently – that is, some years ago – he stood out when he grabbed the microphone and declared “How dare they! How dare they arrest our leader!” That was when Gerry Adams had been arrested regarding the death of Jean McConville in the mouth of an election. A few days later Adams was released. Such were Bobby’s dimensions, it wasn’t hard to imagine him approaching where Gerry Adams was incarcerated and ripping the doors off.
That of course is fantasy. In real life prison doors don’t get ripped off. Bobby Storey, according to news reports, spent a total of twenty years behind bars. That is a frightening statistic. How could anyone maintain their allegiance to a cause, any cause, when twenty years have been stolen from him? It didn’t stop Storey.
Three other claims about Bobby Storey, which may or may not be true.
The TV news, which of course knows everything, claimed Bobby Storey was the IRA’s head of intelligence. In that role, he masterminded the Northern Bank robbery. If I were a responsible citizen, I’d be appalled that £26.5 million was stolen from the bank. But then if I were a responsible citizen, I’d be appalled that Arlene Foster presided over the loss of £500 million from public funds in the absurd RHI scheme. And yet I saw her on TV two days ago, with never a bother on her, still presiding as First Minister. Bobby’s theft, if in fact he was masterminding it, looks like small beer in contrast.
The second event that’s been attributed to him was the audacious raid on the Special Branch office in Castlereagh on St Patrick’s Day, 2002, when the hyper-secure centre was breached in broad daylight and a considerable number of highly confidential files removed. As with the Northern Bank raid, nobody died.
The final story about Storey is that on one occasion, Malachi O’Doherty was in the Felons’ Club. (Yes, Virginia, that does make severe demands on the imagination). As Malachi himself tells it, Storey approached him, stopped and towered over him in silence for a moment, then declared “You. Are a slug”.
As I say, once heard, the tales about Bobby Storey are unforgettable. Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam.
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