The murder of Robert McCartney occurred in Belfast, Northern Ireland, on the night of 30 January 2005 and was carried out by members of the Provisional Irish Republican Army.
McCartney, born in 1971, was a Roman Catholic and lived in the predominantly nationalist Short Strand area of east Belfast, and was said by his family to have been a supporter of Sinn Féin.
[2] The fight arose when McCartney was accused of making an insulting gesture or comment to the wife of an IRA member in the Co social club.
McCartney, who was attempting to defend Devine, was attacked with a broken bottle and then dragged into Verner Street, beaten with metal bars and stabbed.
[5] When Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) officers arrived at the scene, their efforts to investigate the pub and surrounding area were met with an impromptu riot.
Alex Maskey of Sinn Féin claimed, "It appears the PSNI is using last night's tragic stabbing incident as an excuse to disrupt life within this community, and the scale and approach of their operation is completely unacceptable and unjustifiable.
[13] Gerry Adams, then president of Sinn Féin, urged witnesses to come forward to "the family, a solicitor, or any other authoritative or reputable person or body".
The usefulness of making witness statements to the victim's family or to a solicitor was derided by the McCartneys and by a prominent lawyer and Social Democratic and Labour Party politician, Alban Maginness, soon afterwards.
[17] In May 2005, Sinn Féin lost its council seat in the Pottinger area, which covers the Short Strand, with the McCartney family attributing the loss to events surrounding the murder.
[19] The McCartney family travelled to the United States during the 2005 St Patrick's Day celebrations where they were met by US Senators (including Hillary Clinton and John McCain) and U.S. President George W. Bush who expressed support in their campaign for justice.
[21] In December, the McCartney sisters met with UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, and told him they believed the murder had been ordered by a senior IRA member, and that Sinn Féin was still not doing all it could to help them.