DfI worker told he had ‘five minutes’ to leave Creggan ‘or else’ after individual thought he was taking photos of car registration plates
But the individual who issued the threat wrongly claimed the public servant was taking snaps of car registrations in the area.
Derry Daily reported last week that the worker was approached by a man on Thursday who got out of a car and told him he “had five minutes to get out of Creggan or else”.
The worker took the threat seriously and immediately left the area.
The Department for Infrastructure – formerly the Roads Service – said on Friday evening that it had withdrawn all services until assurances could be given that it was safe for the man and his colleagues to return.
The SDLP’s Mark Durkan said he first became aware of the threat when he saw an email from DfI on Friday after the department’s offices had closed.
“I know a few of the guys who work on lorries and contacted them and was able to establish what had happened,” said the Foyle MLA.
“We were able to give the permanent secretary assurances over the weekend that there is no threat to her staff.
“The first thing I did on Friday evening was to establish the nature and the seriousness of the threat.
“I spoke to people on the ground in the Creggan community who were able to identify where the threat had come from and who spoke to the individual from where the threat had emanated.
“It had been largely based on the misunderstanding that this individual saw the DfI worker taking photographs of potholes and mistakenly thought he was taking photographs of car registration numbers and took umbrage at this.
“But the threat has to be condemned, no matter how it was made or what it was, and I am glad it has been withdrawn.”
The DfI says services have now resumed in Creggan after the threat was withdrawn.
In a statement, DfI said: “The department has been working closely with the PSNI as well as local elected and community representatives over the past number of days and we are pleased to confirm that we have now received the necessary assurances that our staff are safe and able to continue their work without fear of violence or intimidation.
“We are very grateful for the expressions of support for our staff and for the universal condemnation of the threats made against them.”
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