Mother of Birmingham's Sapper Mark Quinsey weeps as regiment return
The mother of a soldier shot dead hours before deployment to Afghanistan wept today as his regiment returned home to the base where he was gunned down.
Pamela Quinsey cried as she remembered her son, Sapper Mark Quinsey, 23, who was shot dead by the Real IRA outside Masserene Barracks in Antrim, Northern Ireland in March.
Her daughter Jaime tried to comfort her as soldiers from 38 Engineers Regiment paraded at the base to mark their return from a six-month tour of Afghanistan.
Sapper Quinsey, and Sapper Patrick Azimkar, 21, were killed as they collected a pizza delivery outside the base on March 7.
Masked gunmen fired more than 60 bullets in 30 seconds, hitting Sapper Qunisey at least 13 times.
Relatives of the soldiers today received the Queen Elizabeth Cross, which was introduced only last month and is presented to relatives of soldiers killed in action.
One of the soldiers returning from the tour, Sapper Mark Peebles, from Perth, said he knew the victims well.
