Belfast, Northern Ireland (CNN) -- Senior police officers failed to pursue extensive intelligence that indicated a Catholic priest was involved in one of Northern Ireland's worst terrorist attacks, an independent report concluded Tuesday.
Nine people died and 30 were wounded July 31, 1972, when three bombs went off in the town of Claudy, in County Londonderry. The first was a car bomb that had been parked outside a local pub. Minutes later, bombs exploded outside a post office and a hotel, according to Irish state broadcaster RTE.
No one was ever charged in the case, but there have long been suspicions that a Catholic priest was involved.
Tuesday's report was issued by the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland, an independent body that investigates complaints against the police.
The report found that, rather than acting on the information about the priest's possible involvement, the police sought the government's help in dealing with the Catholic Church. The police then accepted the government's "understanding" that was reported back to them, the report found. CNN
