Neil Lennon ‘parcel bomb’ trial: bomb sent to MSP ‘could have killed’

A SUSPICIOUS package sent to former MSP Trish Godman’s constituency office could have exploded under the correct circumstances, a court has heard.

Royal Navy bomb disposal expert Chief Petty Officer Lee Yates told the High Court in Glasgow yesterday that a liquid inside a plastic bottle within the package had tested positive for the explosive substance tri-acetone tri-peroxide (TATP).

He said the liquid would normally be ignited with a power source such as a battery, but said it could have been triggered by light energy as the envelope was pulled open.

Mr Yates was giving evidence at the trial of Trevor Muirhead, 43, and Neil McKenzie, 42, who are accused of plotting to murder Celtic manager Neil Lennon, as well as Ms Godman and lawyer Paul McBride QC – both supporters of the club – by sending improvised, explosive devices to them. They deny the charges.The court heard that prior to the incident, Ms Godman, who was the Labour MSP for the West Renfrewshire constituency, had worn a Celtic top to the Scottish Parliament as a “dare for charity” on the final day before Holyrood was due to dissolve pending the election which followed in May last year.

A package delivered to her office in Bridge of Weir, Renfrewshire, on Monday 28 March sparked the evacuation of the building.

Mr Yates, 48, was asked by advocate depute Tim Niven-Smith if the device had the “general appearance” of an improvised explosive device, to which he replied: “Absolutely. Anyone opening that envelope would get quite a fright I would think.

“If it functioned in the way it was intended it could cause serious injury or even death, particularly because it contained nails which would act as shrapnel.”

The court also heard evidence from Ms Godman’s personal assistant at the time, Evelyne Campbell, who dealt with all of the politician’s mail and correspondence. She said the brown padded envelope landed with a “thud” when it came through the office’s letter box and said she was immediately suspicious of it because it was heavier than usual and had “the smell of glue”.

“It rattled when I picked it up, as though maybe something had been ordered and broken,” she told the court. “I pulled the flap back a little bit and the smell of glue got stronger. I handed it to my colleague. As he passed it back to me, a black wire and a device, like an LED, fell out.”

Ms Campbell said she did not see what was in the package until after the police had attended, but said there were more than 50 nails inside.

Ms Campbell said she was aware that Ms Godman had received e-mails of a “negative” nature after wearing a Celtic top to the Parliament.

Earlier, the court heard that a suspicious package sent to Celtic manager Neil Lennon had not gone through the proper postal procedures. The brown padded envelope, addressed to Lennon at the club’s training ground in Lennoxtown, East Dunbartonshire, had not been franked and the postage on it was “underpaid”, the High Court in Glasgow was told.

Jurors heard the package was intercepted at the Royal Mail sorting office in Kirkintilloch, East Dunbartonshire, on 26 March last year, after a postman spotted a nail protruding from it. The trial continues.