Delivery driver threatened at gunpoint to drive bomb to police station

A delivery driver was told he would be killed if he did not drive a bomb to a police station in Lurgan.

Two masked men, one armed with a gun, hijacked the man on Monday evening and put an object in the boot.

The driver was then ordered to drive his car to the police station. When he arrived at the station he ran from the white Audi, telling security staff there was a bomb in the car.

On Tuesday afternoon, the Police Service of Northern Ireland said the device had been "crude, but viable improvised explosive device" and that it was "highly likely" dissident republican groups were behind the attack.

Providing an update to the media, Assistant Chief Constable Ryan Henderson said that at about 22:30 BST on Monday night the masked men approached a fast food delivery driver in the Kilwilkie estate in the County Armagh town.

A controlled explosion was carried out on the device.

"As unsophisticated as it was, it posed a significant risk to the terrified delivery driver, our security staff and the local community," he said.

Cordoned-off roads in the town centre have reopened and residents, who were evacuated from about 100 homes, have returned.

Henderson said that it was a "horrific and terrifying" ordeal for the delivery driver, and that he was traumatised.

"This was a reckless and cowardly attack," Henderson said.

"Our investigation is in its early stages but at this stage, we believe it's highly likely that dissident republican groups are responsible."

He said those responsible do not have the support of the community, and that it is a "sad and futile attempt" by dissident republicans to make themselves relevant.

"I want to be very clear, those relics from the past have no place in society today," Henderson added.

"We all treasure the peace we've built here in Northern Ireland, they detest it. They want to disrupt it, they want to bring us back to a place no one wants to be in - we can't afford that to happen."

He appealed for anyone with information, no matter how insignificant, to contact them.

Earlier, Deputy Chief Constable Bobby Singleton said "everything points towards dissident republicans" being responsible for the incident.

"We're describing this as a viable device so yes, we would say lives were at risk," he said.

Lurgan residents frightened

Lurgan Town Hall was opened overnight for people who were forced out of their homes.

Paul Henderson said he was shocked when police came to his home just after 01:00 telling him he had to leave.

He added there was a family with a young child in the hall when he arrived, and that it was "very frightening" to get a knock on the door at that time.

The Democratic Unionist Party's (DUP) Carla Lockhart, who is the town's MP, said those behind the alert knew it would cause "maximum disruption" and that it had caused "utter mayhem".

"Obviously it's grim that when we think in 2026 that this is the type of activity that some people want to try and engage in," she said.

"My thoughts are very much with the individual whose vehicle was hijacked.

"Lurgan has moved on and sadly there's a small nucleus of people who want to agitate and drag it back."

First Minister Michelle O'Neill said those behind the hijacking and the station attack have "nothing to offer our communities but harm, fear, and disruption".

Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly condemned the incident, adding the actions of those responsible were "deeply disturbing and serve no purpose other than to endanger lives and hold society back".

'Hallmarks of dissident republican attack'

Ulster Unionist Party leader Jon Burrows said it "was a reckless attack".

"I think it's a reminder that while they've been heavily infiltrated and dismantled, there still remains lethal intent and capability of dissident republicans," he said.

"To traumatise someone who is out doing a job, point a gun at them, traumatise them by asking them to transport what they believe to be a bomb to a police station, is utterly cowardly."

Upper Bann MLA John O'Dowd said the people behind the incident "represent no one but themselves, and stand isolated from the community".

"Progress will not be stymied by these people, Lurgan will continue to move forward.

"I want to once again thank all those who helped and offered shelter to those families who were out of their homes as a result of this alert."

The Sinn Féin minister said the delivery driver who went through a "terrifying experience".

Justice Minister Naomi Long said it was a "shameful and dangerous attack" which put lives at risk.

"There is absolutely no place for this utterly reckless and abhorrent behaviour," the Alliance party leader said.

Social Democratic and Labour Party leader Claire Hanna said the use of a gun in the hijacking was very concerning.

"The people behind this showed absolutely no regard for the driver, the local community or police officers, whose lives could have been put at risk," she said.

Policing Board chairman Mukesh Sharma said those responsible were "living in a past that nobody wants".

Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn called it a "reckless act of violence", adding that it showed "a callous disregard for the community in Lurgan".

"There is no place for this in Northern Ireland, and those responsible must be held to account," he said.

"I would urge anyone with information to contact the police."