Even by Northern Ireland standards, Vincent McKenna was a highly controversial figure. From the moment he entered the political arena three years ago, he provoked strong reactions. He was loved and hated in equal measure.
His was a remarkable journey. He started out as a hard-line republican but became one of the Provisional IRA's most outspoken critics. It was in unionist circles he was most popular. The man who once branded RUC officers "legitimate targets", ended up a staunch defender of the force.
Last year, he shared a platform at a "Save the RUC" rally with former Chief Constable, Sir Jack Hermon. He received a standing ovation. McKenna (37), was best known for his work with victims of "punishment" attacks.
Articulate and telegenic, he gained a high media profile battling for the working-class youth maimed by the paramilitaries. He accused the British government of turning a blind eye to the attacks in order to protect the peace process.
McKenna is back in the headlines again but not as a champion of the abused. Yesterday at Cavan Circuit Court, he was jailed for three years for 31 counts of indecent and sexual assault against his daughter Sorcha (18).
He denied the charges. Some of his former allies are shocked and embarrassed. His opponents are delighted. The case is dominating conversation in nationalist areas of Belfast.
McKenna grew up in Aughnacloy, Co Tyrone. He joined the Fianna, the IRA's youth wing, after leaving school in 1980. He worked in a poultry factory and married when his girlfriend, Fiona McCleary, became pregnant.
He was eager for active service with the IRA. "I wanted to kill Brits but everyone kept telling me to wait. So I went out on my own and fire-bombed an RUC man's house and a chip shop because a Catholic RUC man used the flat above it." He was sentenced to nine months and was imprisoned in Crumlin Road jail. Some Provisional IRA sources have denied he had any involvement with their organisation. But he was accepted into their wing in jail and reliable republican sources insist he was involved at a low level.
They confirm his claims that he was close to Jim Lynagh, a senior IRA commander shot dead by the SAS during an ambush of Loughall RUC station in Co Tyrone in 1987. Video footage shows him at the funeral. By 1990, McKenna said he had grown disenchanted with IRA violence. In 1992, his marriage broke down. He had four children by then. He left the family home in Monaghan and eventually settled in Belfast. He studied politics at Queen's University. He began another relationship with his present partner Sandra. They have two young children.
McKenna set up home on the Ormeau Road. In 1997, he stood in the council elections but secured only 12 votes. The following year, he criticised the Lower Ormeau Concerned Community group which opposes Orange marches in the area.
He carried out a report which he said showed majority support for the parades if they were free from sectarian triumphalism. Unionists welcomed the survey. Others questioned his research methods.
He then joined the anti-paramilitary group, Families Against Intimidation and Terror, which campaigns against "punishment" attacks. He left, in controversial circumstances, several months later after a series of internal clashes.
He set up his own organisation, the Northern Ireland Human Rights Bureau which he operated from his home. Some of his statistics on "punishment" attacks were queried, others were accepted. He correctly accused the Provisional IRA of involvement in the murders of Andrew Kearney, Ed McCoy and Charles Bennett.
Ms Sorcha McKenna told the court the abuse occurred from when she was four to 12-years-old. She said there were 1,000 incidents which started in 1985 and ended in 1993, shortly after he left the family home in Monaghan.
Her mother, Ms Fiona McCleary, said Sorcha had complained of McKenna's behaviour approximately 10 years ago. When she challenged him, he admitted it and promised not to do it again, his wife said. She did not contact gardai then.
Sorcha continued to see her father after he moved to Belfast. Two years ago, when she was 17, she stayed in his home while doing work experience in a solicitor's office. She made statements to gardai about the abuse last year.
McKenna admitted hitting his daughter on 12-15 occasions but denied sexual abuse. Two charges of abuse against him were dropped when it was proved he was in England at the time.