IRA Suspect Detained Amid Fears for Thatcher’s Safety
A suspected low-key operative in the Irish Republican Army was being detained by authorities Sunday amid concerns about the safety of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
Michael Derek Collins, 31, was arrested Saturday for overstaying a one-month visitor’s visa.
A spokesman for Thatcher, who is attending the annual seven-nation economic summit, said Collins was wanted by the Royal Ulster Constabulary, the police force in British-run Northern Ireland.
“He is wanted by the RUC, but there is no threat to the prime minister as far as we know,” the spokesman said.
He said Collins was wanted in connection with incidents in the 1970s but refused to elaborate.
A statement issued at the summit said Collins had entered Canada last September on a one-month visa. He was being held pending an immigration hearing. No criminal charges had been filed by midday Sunday.
An Irish special branch officer, who refused to be identified, said, “We believe (Collins) to have been a low-key operative, and to our knowledge he didn’t hold any senior position in the IRA.”
Special attention is being given to Thatcher’s safety after a bomb exploded last Wednesday in Lisburn, Northern Ireland, killing six British soldiers. The IRA claimed responsibility for the blast.
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