Loyalist Winston Irvine admits guilt to firearms charges

Prominent loyalist Winston Irvine has admitted guilt to charges related to firearms and ammunition. Irvine, 49, residing on Ballysillan Road in north Belfast, and his co-defendant Robin Workman, 53, from Shore Road in Larne, County Antrim, were scheduled to face trial at Belfast Crown Court before a judge without a jury. Nevertheless, after legal deliberations, counsel for both individuals requested that their clients be re-arraigned on all accusations against them. Appearing in the dock, both men confessed to possessing firearms and ammunition under suspicious conditions. Additionally, they acknowledged two counts of handgun possession without a certificate, one count of ammunition possession without a certificate, possession of a prohibited weapon, and possession of a firearm without a certificate. Workman additionally pleaded guilty to the charge of possessing a .177 calibre air rifle without the required firearm certificate. These offences all took place on June 8, 2022. The defendants had initially entered not guilty pleas to all charges during their first arraignment in August. Judge Gordon Kerr KC stated that since the offences inherently met the custody threshold, Irvine and Workman were eligible for pre-sentence reports to be compiled by the Probation Board NI. Legal representatives for Irvine and Workman indicated that they would not request pre-sentence reports for their clients prior to sentencing, opting instead to furnish the court with their own documentation at a later time. The prosecution raised no objections to the defendants continuing to be released on bail. Irvine and Workman are scheduled for sentencing on January 23. On Monday, no specific details regarding the circumstances of the offences were presented in court. During a hearing at Belfast Magistrates’ Court in June, the court heard that police stated Workman transported a number of weapons and ammunition to Belfast’s Glencairn area in his van, which law enforcement suspected were subsequently placed into the boot of Irvine’s Volkswagen Tiguan vehicle. Shortly thereafter, Irvine’s vehicle was intercepted by police on Disraeli Street. When questioned if there was anything in the car he could not explain, Irvine responded, “bag in the boot”. Inside a holdall in the boot, officers found a long-barrelled firearm, two suspected pistols, multiple magazines, and a substantial amount of ammunition. Irvine remained silent during police interviews. He submitted a pre-written statement, asserting: “I have developed a reputation as a trusted interlocutor engaging with the community on key outstanding issues in relation to the Northern Ireland peace and political process.” Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content of external websites. Information regarding our approach to external linking is available.