British Government Agrees £10m Payout to Families of IRA Double Agent Victims.
The British government has provisionally agreed to pay £10 million to the families of people abducted, murdered, or interrogated by its double agents operating within the IRA — including the notorious agent known as "Stakeknife."
The settlement, described as a "consensus" by the families' legal representatives, covers 19 families who have taken 34 legal actions against the state. The deal is now subject to approval by the Northern Ireland Policing Board.
Who Was Stakeknife?
The principal agent at the centre of the case was Freddie Scappaticci, a west Belfast man who operated within the IRA's internal security unit — the group responsible for hunting and eliminating suspected informers.
While interrogating and killing suspected traitors for the IRA, Scappaticci was simultaneously passing intelligence to British Army intelligence and MI5. He operated from the late 1970s until the 1990s, and died in 2023 in England after being relocated following his unmasking.
The Kenova Inquiry:
A nine-year investigation costing nearly £50 million linked Scappaticci to:
14 murders
15 abductions
The Kenova report found that protecting Stakeknife's identity was prioritised over protecting lives that could and should have been saved. It concluded he had "probably taken more lives than he had saved."
More Than One Agent:
Crucially, nine of the 19 families are receiving payments in respect of an agent who was not Scappaticci — suggesting a greater number of security force infiltrators within the IRA's internal security unit than previously acknowledged.
What Happens Now:
Kevin Winters of KRW Law, representing the families, said the settlement provides "additional leverage" to the PSNI Chief Constable's call for an official apology. However, the British government has made no admission of liability and continues to refuse to confirm Scappaticci's role as a spy, sticking to its policy of "Neither Confirm nor Deny."