Trust faces questions over horror fire failings

Catriona Loughran • Published 10 Dec 2009 09:00

There have been calls for a public inquiry after an inquest concluded that a Fermanagh sex-offender murdered his entire family in an horrific house fire in Omagh two years ago.

On Tuesday coroner Suzanne Anderson ruled that Ederney-native Arthur McElhill killed himself and his family by setting their Lammy Crescent home alight in November 2007.

In her findings at Omagh Courthouse, Ms Anderson concluded Mr McElhill burned their house down because Ms McGovern was planning to walk out on him.

"I am satisfied in the balance of probabilities that Arthur McElhill and Lorraine McGovern have been up all night and that she was about to leave, taking some of her children, when the fire was started by Arthur McElhill", she ruled.

During the last hours of the four-day Inquest, the coroner was told details that Mr McElhill was engaged in a sexual relationship with their 16-year-old babysitter just weeks before the blaze and that he was attempting to groom other teenage girls on the internet by using his son's Bebo social-networking account.

Following evidence, Ms Anderson concluded that his partner Lorraine was likely to be in the process of leaving him and this, coupled with his fear of facing prison because of his illicit sexual relationship with a teenage girl, contributed to him starting the fire.

Questions are still being asked as to how this father-of-five, known to the authorities for 13 years and had two previous convictions of rape, was allowed to slip through the net and deemed as a "low risk" sex offender.

West Tyrone MP Pat Doherty said there were too many questions left unanswered into the performance of the statutory agencies and has called for a public inquiry into the fire deaths.

An independent report last year criticised how information was communicated within disciplines of The Western Trust and other agencies and offered 63 recommendations in how to improve the support and protection of vulnerable children and families.

Although it declined to comment about the findings of the inquest, The Western Trust issued a statement that it has implemented 54 of the 55 relevant recommendations and continues to work towards completion of all recommendations, particularly focusing on the one outstanding issue in relation to the backlog of case conference minutes.

Outside the steps of the court, the grief-stricken members of the McGovern family stood silently with their heads bowed as their solicitor Sean McHugh read a statement on their behalf stating they were relieved the proceedings were over, "We are thankful and relieved that these proceedings have now concluded, which, we trust, will bring us closure on this awful tragedy and enable us get on with our lives. We are mindful that the McElhill family have also suffered greatly and we extend to them our sincere sympathy".

In a statement released by Arthur McElhill's parents Charles and Patricia, they spoke of their "immeasurable pain" by the events of two years ago, which they said has "shattered and devastated our lives".

"As parents we have always tried out best for our children. The duty of any parent is to teach their children the difference between right and wrong. Arthur was no different in that he was brought to respect the same values as our eight other children. Our pain is immeasurable and will endure for the rest of our lives. We love and miss Arthur, Lorraine and our grandchildren every day. We will always remember them as a happy family".

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This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 10 Dec 09

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