A History of Crimes Linked to Sinn Féin/IRA Since The Peace Process Began

They haven't gone away, you know!

Sinn Féin and the IRA, the political wing and the paramilitary wing of the so-called Irish republicanism—like a two-headed hydra, but with more balaclavas and less charm. Since the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, Northern Ireland has been trying to put the Troubles behind it, like a recovering alcoholic trying to forget the decades of violence. But just when you think it’s safe to go back to the pub, someone blows up a car or robs a bank or, you know, murders someone. Sinn Féin has been working overtime to rebrand itself as a respectable political party, but let’s say their PR team has their work cut out for them. Here are some of the more infamous crimes linked to Sinn Féin and the IRA since 1999.

The Northern Bank Robbery

In December 2004, a gang of masked men decided to give Christmas a whole new meaning by robbing the Northern Bank in Belfast to the tune of £26.5 million. That’s not just a robbery; that’s a middle finger to the entire banking system. The police, in a not-so-shocking…