BY MICHAEL BRESLIN
The young Police officer who suffered serious lower body injuries when a booby-trap device attached to his car exploded near Spamount on Monday night as he was on his way to duty at Enniskillen Police Station is expected to return to the force.
The victim, who Police asked not to be identified, is in his mid-30's, is a Catholic and a member of a very popular Omagh family, but had moved away from the town.
The incident occurred at 9.15 on Monday night, but help was quickly to hand. One man said there were two people attending to him when he got out of his car and raced across to the scene.
"He had wounds to the backs of his leg and rear. I thought the car would start to smoke, I knew there were people with him and looking after him, so I kept looking at his vehicle and the more I looked, the more I could see flames starting, so I phoned the Fire Brigade and the people with the injured man lifted him forward."
The attack, which is believed to have been carried out by dissident Republicans, has been condemned by the victim's commanding officer, Chief Inspector Alwyin Barton and community representatives, including Martin McGuinness, the Deputy First Minister.
Mr Barton, who knew the officer personally, appealed to anyone with any knowledge, anything that would help the detectives with their investigation, to contact the PSNI. Still clearly upset, he spoke about the young man.
"He's one of mine. You treat them like your own. You want to see them well provided for to do the job they do, and then you have people like this coming in with their own agenda and no support for them whatsoever.
"He is a nice young man. All he wanted to do as to make it a safer place for members of the public to work and socialise in. Then, he finds himself subject to an attack by people with absolutely no mandate, who are providing nothing to the local community, living amongst people who had firmly believed they had moved on.
"These people have nothing to offer society other than to go out and injury and harm enthusiastic young officers."
Chief Inspector Barton confirmed that the police officer was on his way to work in Enniskillen Station, and that he had sustained serious injury. He said the other frightening aspect of the attack was the danger it posed to others had they been with the man.
Looking ahead, Mr Barton said he firmly believed the young man would return to the force: "He will come back in some shape or form to serve. He is exceptionally capable an intelligent and he has a huge amount to offer this organisation and, through it, the community he serves".
Councillor Bert Johnston, the chairman of the Fermanagh District Policing Partnership, said he condemned, 'the murderous attack with every fibre of my being'.
"This was an attack on an innocent policeman returning to his base at Enniskillen to continue to give a service to all the people of Fermanagh."
He said the Fermanagh District Policing Partnership would be holding its bi-monthly meeting tonight (Wed) and, as chairman, he would be giving an opportunity to other members to voice their condemnation.
"This has to be the demon deeds of a lunatic fringe who don't want any sort of policing, and I hope it meets with the condemnation it deserves."
Mr Johnston extended his best wishes to the injured officer fro a speedy recovery, and to his family, at this trying time.
As we went to press yesterday, no group had claimed responsibility for the attack. However, dissident Republicans are being blamed.
They carried out two non-fatal attacks on PSNI officers last year, in Derry city and in Dungannon, both of which were condemned, as well as this latest, by Sinn Fein's Martin McGuinness, the deputy First Minister.
"I am not surprised', he said, "that this has happened. I think we always have to prepare ourselves for further activities. The big question is: have they the capacity to carry out a full-blooded military campaign/ I don't believe they have."
