Four Men Arrested in Murder of Gay Journalist in Northern Ireland

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Four Men Arrested in Murder of Gay Journalist in Northern Ireland

Four men have been arrested in the murder of gay journalist and LGBTQ activist Lyra McKee, who was shot to death during riots in Northern Ireland in April 2019.

In a statement, the Police Service of Northern Ireland said the men were aged 20, 27, 29 and 52, and arrested in Derry/Londonderry on Thursday morning.

They wrote: “The arrests have been made under the Terrorism Act after the New IRA claimed responsibility for murdering Lyra, who was shot dead in the Creggan area of the city on 18 April 2019. All four men have been taken to Musgrave Serious Crime Suite in Belfast.”

Senior Investigating Officer, Detective Superintendent Jason Murphy called on the public for help in the investigation: “I have always believed that some people within the community know what happened and who was involved. I understand that people may be frightened to talk to us. I have previously given my personal assurance relating to anonymity for the purpose of this investigation and I renew this assurance today, as we approach the anniversary of Lyra’s murder. I want the community in Creggan to think about how that horrific attack impacted them personally and how it impacted the entire community. We saw widescale revulsion after Lyra was murdered and I remain determined to work with the community and local policing to convert that revulsion into tangible evidence to bring those who murdered Lyra to justice. I also know that many people were recording mobile phone video clips that night and whilst we had a huge response to my initial appeal for those videos, I believe that others may exist. I would ask anyone who has mobile phone footage to upload it onto our Major Incident Public Portal at www.MIPP.police.uk.”

CNN adds: “McKee was shot dead in April 2019 amid rioting in the Creggan area of the Northern Irish city, which is referred to as Derry by Irish nationalists and as Londonderry by British unionists. McKee, who was 29, was standing close to a police vehicle on April 18 when she was wounded by a single gunman firing shots into a residential area. She died soon after from her injuries, police said.She was the first journalist to be killed in the United Kingdom since 2001, according to the nonprofit Committee to Protect Journalists.”

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