Will of man said to be agent in IRA to be sealed

The will of the man alleged to be Britain's top agent inside the IRA known as Stakeknife is not to be made public, the high court has ruled in a legal first.

- Haroon Siddique

Ordering that the will of Freddie Scappaticci should not be open for public inspection as is usual, Sir Julian Flaux, the chancellor of the high court, said it was the first time this had been done for a person who was not a member of the royal family.

Scappaticci, who was accused of torturing and murdering several victims while simultaneously running an IRA enforcement unit and working for the British state in the 1980s, died in hiding in April 2023 at the age of 77.

He always denied being Stakeknife.

In his ruling, published yesterday, Flaux said a hearing to decide whether the will should be sealed was held in private on 21 July.

The application was made by a man named Michael Johnson, who had said he would act as Scappaticci's representative providing the will was sealed.