Police on high alert after Northern Ireland rocked by second bomb find

POLICE in Northern Ireland are on high alert after a pipe bomb was found following a separate incident in which dissident ­republicans attempted to murder an officer with a car bomb.

The pipe bomb was found close to the gates of a police staion in the town of Tandragee in Mid-Ulster yesterday, forcing the evacuation of nearby homes.

The incident followed a foiled attempt to murder a police ­officer on Sunday as he was about to take his wife and two young children out for lunch.

The bomb placed under the car of the off-duty constable in east Belfast could have killed his young family, the Police Service of Northern Ireland assistant chief constable George Hamilton said.

“If that officer had not checked under his car we would have been looking at a murder or multiple murders,” he added.

The warning came as the pipe bomb-type device was discovered yesterday near a police station in Co Armagh.

Elderly residents were evacuated from their homes in ­Tandragee, while army technical officers examined the object, which was close to the gates of the town’s PSNI station.

Newry and Armagh DUP Stormont assembly member William Irwin condemned those responsible.

He said: “This is a very concerning incident, especially in a rural town like Tandragee and it is especially concerning when so many residents, many of whom are elderly, have had to leave their homes whilst this suspect device is dealt with.

“No-one in Tandragee wants this type of disruption and indeed considering the threat to our police officers remains so high at the moment, having devices left at police stations is extremely reckless and totally abhorrent.

“Young families also go for walks out the Armagh road and pass the station gates, which only adds to the risk this suspect device could have posed.”

In the earlier incident on Sunday in east Belfast, the constable was checking his car outside his house on Upper Newtownards Road when he found the device.

Mr Hamilton appealed for anyone with information on the latest murder bid to come forward.

He said: “All right-minded people need to condemn this, it is a repugnant and inhumane act. We believe that the consequences of this could have been absolutely devastating for the officer, his family, the police family and for the community across Northern Ireland.

“He is a good officer and hard-working. His purpose is to serve his community.

“Those people who are anti-peace… who are not prepared to move forward, have tried to murder this officer, we consider that repugnant, it is inhumane by any standards, in any society that is wrong.”

Stormont justice minister David Ford condemned those responsible.

He said: “Let us be clear – this was an attack not only on a police officer and his family but on our whole community.

“The officer was serving the community, he was working for all of us.

“It is ironic that this latest attack was carried out so close to Stormont, where those who are democratically elected seek to move matters forward through debate.

“The people responsible for this and other recent attacks have no mandate and speak for no-one.”