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Getting the Dirt on the IRA
Agents from Britain's Military Reconnaissance Force (MRF) opened their laundromat in an IRA stronghold in Belfast, offering discount coupons. Clothes poured in. So did clues.
The MRF had installed a special "sniffer" washing machine to test laundry for explosive materials, gun residue, even blood. It likely used IR spectroscopy. Agents also compared the laundry to previous loads from each home, looking for changes in clothing size or type that might suggest it was hiding IRA members. Anything suspicious triggered a house search.
After three months, double agents betrayed the operation. An IRA ambush killed at least one MRF agent. |