David Jonathan Holden is the 18 year old Grenadier Guardsman soldier who is believed to fire the fatal shot which killed Aidan.
Security forces were informed by members of the public that a man had been shot but it would be nearly 20 minutes before they went to the scene.
According to Mr Holden he was unaware that anyone had even been even shot and never thought to check. RUC and army colleagues of Holden brought him down from the sanger gave him a seat and a cigarette as he appeared “a little shocked” after ‘accidentally’ discharging the GPMG (General Purpose Machine Gun) after doing cleaning duties in the sanger before he was taken to Dungannon RUC station where he gave a written statement to police detectives.
Appearing at Cookstown Magistrates Court on Wednesday 24th February 1988, a solicitor for Holden said that “his finger slipped from the trigger and that he had not aimed the gun or pointed it.” He was then granted bail in military custody.
Manslaughter Charges Dropped
Holden was initially charged with killing Aidan in September 1988 but those charges were dropped. At that time, staff from the Director of Public Prosecutions met the senior RUC investigating detective and a forensic firearms expert and decided to withdraw the manslaughter charge.
In December 1988, Holden was charged by the British Army under Section 69 of the Army Act 1955 with the offence of ‘prejudice to good order and military discipline’ and was fined £370.86 by his commanding officer. Holden returned to England where he resumed military duty.
In 1990, Holden was said to have had a breakdown at a training exercise on a firing range and was subsequently discharged from military service. In 2023, his defence barrister told Belfast Crown Court that his client (Holden) “has suffered and continues to suffer from the effects of PTSD.”
