Lyndal Melrose (Stephen's wife). On the night of 27 May 1990, the two couples had a meal at a restaurant in the town of Roermond, near the border with West Germany. The town was popular with off-duty British servicemen stationed in Germany; the Royal Air Force (RAF) bases of RAF Wildenrath, RAF Bruggen and JHQ Rheindahlen were nearby. As they returned to their car, at about 11pm, Spanos and Melrose were shot dead by two men clad in black with automatic weapons. The women were unhurt. The car used by the gunmen was found burnt-out in Belgium, the border of which is also near to Roermond. Aftermath The IRA claimed responsibility the next day. Its statement said that its members mistook the two men for off-duty British soldiers and called the shooting "a tragedy and a mistake". The car used by Spanos and Melrose had British number plates, and Dutch police believed this may have led to them being targeted. Australian Prime Minister Bob Hawke described the statement of regret as "twisted, too late and meaningless." Five days after the attack, the IRA shot dead Michael Dillon-Lee, a British Army major, in Dortmund. Two weeks later, it bombed a British Army base at Hanover. Paul Hughes (born Newry, 1958), Donna Maguire (born Newry, 1963), Sean Hick (born Glenageary, 1956), and Gerard Harte (born Lurgan, 1956) were arrested in Belgium in June 1990, and were later charged with the murders of Spanos, Melrose and Major Dillon-Lee. Harte was convicted of the murders of Spanos and Melrose and sentenced to 18 years in prison, but his conviction was overturned on appeal. The other three were acquitted of the Roermond murders, but then extradited to Germany and tried for the murder of Major Dillon-Lee. All three were acquitted as well, although Maguire was remanded and later convicted of taking part in bombing a British Army base in the Osnabrück mortar attack. Evidence also linked Desmond Grew, an IRA member later shot dead by the Special Air Service, to the group. Subsequent activity by Melrose family In August 2010, Stephen Melrose's parents and sister visited Stormont to "find answers about his murder". They were greeted by Ulster Unionist Party MLA, David McNarry, but denied a meeting by both deputy First Minister, Martin McGuinness and Sinn Féin President, Gerry Adams. Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph, Melrose's sister, Helen Jackson, said the refusals of McGuinness and