Joseph Parker inquest: Soldier 'did not know' about death

Joseph Parker died a day after he was shot at a Belfast dance hall in 1971

A former soldier who was present on the night the Army shot a man dead said he did not know anyone had been killed until six months later.

A lawyer for the man's family told an inquest that the testimony was "frankly incredible".

Joseph Parker, 25, was shot in the thighs at a dance in north Belfast he went to with his sister.

He was the father of an 18 month old and his wife was expecting a second child.

Soldier B was granted anonymity to give evidence via videolink to the inquest.

At the end of 1971, Soldier B was 35. It was his first tour of duty in Northern Ireland.

He told the inquest that he was second-in-command of a "black face" Army foot patrol in Ardoyne on the night Mr Parker was shot.

Knocked unconscious

Now in his 80s, Soldier B told the inquest that he had gone into Toby's Hall with three others from his patrol in search of a "wanted man".

He described how a crowd of more than 200 people had attempted "to separate the men from each other".

A crowd of men then moved toward the officer in charge and attempted to take his rifle.

A shot rang out and Soldier B said he was attacked with a bottle, struck over the head with a chair and was briefly knocked unconscious.

When he came to, he said he "got to his feet and fired two shots into the ceiling".

'Panicked'

In a statement made the day after the shooting, Soldier B made no reference to issuing a warning before firing.

In a statement given three days ago to the coroner's team, he said he had shouted at the crowd "to let go of his captain" before he discharged his weapon.

A lawyer for the Parker family asked why Soldier B had not issued any specific warning before firing and put it to him that "he had panicked".

He also asked why he had fired when he had not been confronted by a gunman.

Soldier B said he had been "confronted by 200 to 300 people".

The family's lawyer responded that he had "moved to the most extreme option without considering any of the other options available to you".

Vulnerable

During his evidence, Soldier B said he had only heard of the death of Mr Parker six months after the shooting, when he was asked to appear at the original inquest.

A lawyer for the Parker family described that as "frankly incredible".

He asked if there had been any discussions between Soldier B and his colleagues back at the Flax Street Barracks about the shooting.

Soldier B replied: "No."

The lawyer asked if that was his sworn evidence, to which Soldier B replied "yes".

Soldier B told the court that he had felt vulnerable while in Belfast - more vulnerable than he had felt while serving in Aden, Yemen.

He said in Aden he had a recognised enemy, but in Belfast that was not the case.

The coroner is expected to give his findings on the case on Friday.