Tony Buchanan — not his real name — won eight medals and awards for his role in undercover operations that still remain secret today.
After joining the army in 1983, he went on to serve with the Parachute Regiment before moving into undercover work in 1988.
He was part of the 14th Intelligence and Security Company Northern Ireland, a plainclothes unit trained by the SAS. It was mainly controlled by the RUC Special Branch through the Tasking Co-ordination Group.
Specialising in lock-picking and other covert methods of entering buildings, Buchanan broke into hidden IRA arms dumps and meeting places when the terrorists were absent. Once inside, his unit planted tracing beacons, movement sensors and other devices that enabled the intelligence services to listen to the terrorists’ conversations and trace the movement of weapons.
His last role before leaving the army was as a trainer of undercover operatives at the SAS’s headquarters in Hereford.