IRA trial jury sent to hotel

An Old Bailey jury trying four men accused of plotting anIRA lorry- bomb attack on London was yesterday sent to a hotel for a fifth night after again failing to reach verdicts.

It returns today to continue deliberations. Patrick Kelly, 31, Brian McHugh, 31, James Murphy, 26 and Michael Phillips, 22, have denied conspiring to cause explosions between 1 January and 24 September last year and possessing explosives.

The IRA planned the campaign in London but was foiled by police, who shot dead a vital member of the team and arrested others, the prosecution has alleged. The dead man, Diarmuid O'Neill, 27, was allegedly "at the heart of the conspiracy" and belonged to a Provisional IRA unit which was preparing the attack. The gang had access to many tons of explosives and was using a secure storage unit in north London as a bomb factory, the court heard.