The families of Scots soldiers' murdered by the IRA have been left outraged after the 'murder' suspect has died and escaped justice.
Anthony 'Dutch' Doherty died in Dublin at the age of 71 last week - more than 50 years after the execution of the three Royal Highland Fusilier squaddies.
Brothers John and Joseph McCaig, 17 and 18, respectively, and Dougald McCaughey, 23 were the first off-duty soldiers to be killed by the IRA on March 10, 1971.
Doherty was the only suspect arrested for being part of a Provisional IRA team which is said to be behind the triple killing.
He is believed to have lured the soldiers from Kelly’s Cellar pub in Belfast, with two women thought to have been used as a ‘honeytrap’ to tempt the soldiers out of the pub.
John and Joseph, from Ayr, and Dougald, from Glasgow, were killed at a roadside in Ulster with gunshots to the back of the head.
Their deaths caused an escalation of violence during the Irish Troubles.
After being questioned by detectives the same year, Doherty confessed to the murders but escaped from jail soon afterwards.
He is understood to have been traced to Dublin in February 2020.
The families of the soldiers have slammed the authorities for not brining the suspect to justice.
The Scottish Sun reports David McCaughey, Dougald’s cousin, said: “We have been badly let down.
"This coward is dead and we have been robbed of the chance to learn more.”
Kris McGurk, of the Three Soldiers campaign group, added: “This was a suspect in a brutal murder but the authorities allowed him to escape.
“The only words I can find to describe how they reacted to information of Doherty being alive are negligent and shameful.”
A Home Office spokeswoman said: “We have received a letter from the families’ legal representatives and will respond as soon as possible.”
Don't miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond - Sign up to our daily newsletter here .
