I didn't intentionally buy diseased sheep, they were passed by a vet in Carlisle

John Walsh

Sinister figures involved in this illegal trade are not taking kindly to losing money from their lucrative activities.

Mr Walsh brought a consignment of sheep into Northern Ireland from Carlisle in Cumbria last month at the beginning of the foot-and-mouth outbreak.

They were supposed to go for slaughter at an abattoir in the town of Lurgan but the deal fell through.

They ended up instead on a farm in south Armagh and were discovered to have the disease at the end of February.

Cattle dealer John Walsh denies wrong-doing

The authorities in Northern Ireland said at the time the animals in question had been illegally imported into the province.

Outcast

The Agriculture Minister Brid Rodgers said she was disgusted by the "selfish actions" of some people who had put the future of Ireland's agricultural industry at risk.

But John Walsh has protested his innocence.

"I didn't intentionally buy diseased sheep," he said from his hideaway in the UK,

"They were passed by a vet in Carlisle, there's a health certificate."

It is understood Mr Walsh is one of the people who have been accused by the authorities of not co-operating.

He is an outcast where he lives, it was me in charge of the sheep not Mr Collins

John Walsh

But he says they had contact telephone numbers for him at all times and that he spoke to officials about his business.

"Every person in the authorities, north and south had that phone number from the Sunday we became aware the sheep might be suspicious," he said.

Tight surveillance

Mr Walsh said the farmer who was given some of the sheep by him should not be blamed for what had happened.

"He is an outcast where he lives," he said.

"It was me in charge of the sheep not Mr Collins."

Mr Walsh said he himself had a family in Ireland and "a special person".

"But," he said: "as true as God, if any of them died I'd hardly go back to bury them, that's how I feel about how I've been treated. "

Cross-border clampdown

Since the foot-and-mouth crisis farms in the Irish Republic, which, so far, appear clear of the disease, have been under tight surveillance.

Irish police carrying out checks at the Northern Ireland border have been joined by more than 1,000 Irish soldiers.

Not since Northern Ireland's checkpoints to clamp down on terrorism were removed, has there been such a high level of security about movement along the frontier.