| Gareth O'Connor | |
| Birth Name: | Gareth Paul O'Connor[1] |
| Birth Date: | 1978/1979 |
| Birth Place: | Armagh, Northern Ireland |
| Death Date: | c. May 2003 |
| Disappeared Place: | Newtownhamilton, County Armagh, Northern Ireland |
| Nationality: | Irish |
Gareth Paul O'Connor (1978/1979 – c. May 2003) was a member of the Real IRA who was murdered in 2003.[2]
O'Connor disappeared after driving through Newtownhamilton in 2003, en route to Dundalk Garda station, where he regularly reported as part of bail conditions imposed after he was charged in the Republic of Ireland with membership of the Real IRA.[3]
In May 2003, Monsignor Denis Faul stated that he believed an armed group was involved in O'Connor's disappearance:
On 11 June 2005, O'Connor's body was discovered in his car in Newry Canal, County Down.[4] His father, Mark, believes that the Provisional IRA were responsible for the murder, as they had threatened father and son. Mark O'Connor said: "I gave those names [of the killers] to Gerry Kelly [Sinn Féin assembly member]. But nothing has been done. Gerry Adams ignores us and ignores all the families of the Disappeared."[5]
A Sinn Féin spokesperson said:[5]