in later years, i've come to the view that that's perhaps what the internal security unit's real raison d'etre was, the real purpose was to protect the army council. the british wanted that army council post—1983 in place because they knew that the army council were assets, and i differentiate between assets and agents here, that they were assets in as far as they were going to deliver a solution. former ira prisoner gerard hodgins knew scappaticci to be part of the ira's security unit. i would have first bumped into freddie scappaticci from about 1986 onwards when i was initially working with sinn fein in west belfast and then the republican press centre, as well as my other duties. he's just somebody i knew from the ira and i would just be somebody he would know from the ira. in west belfast, he frequently