A.S. Jeapes

A.S. Jeapes was a senior British Army officer in the 1980s.

Jeapes joined the SAS in 1958 and continued to serve with them for the next nineteen years. He was awarded the Military Cross in 1959. He later became an instructor specializing in teaching counter-insurgency tactics. From 1974 to 1977 he commanded "2nd SAS Regiment" (sic), during which time they were involved in active service both in Oman and Northern Ireland. General Jeapes he was awarded an OBE in 1977.

Commander Land Forces (Northern Ireland)

Jeapes promulgated a 'Directive for the Force Research Unit (Northern Ireland)' on 26 July 1986.

Sir Desmond de Silva's Pat Finucane Review gives the following account of Jeapes' role in the recruitment of Brian Nelson by the Force Research Unit in 1987.

Thereafter A/05 cleared the FRU's re-recruitment of Nelson through the Army chain of command. His note of events indicates that he "briefed CLF [Commander Land Forces] and ACOS [Assistant Chief of Staff] G2 on the case and outlined the [Security Service] interest". The then CLF, Major General A S Jeapes, apparently indicated that he "saw no reason" why the Service should take over the case. When interviewed by the Stevens team in 1990, Major General Jeapes showed little recollection of the circumstances of Nelson's re-recruitment, though I see no reason to doubt the accuracy of A/05's note. When they were interviewed in 1990, the Security Service DCI and ASP suggested that the CLF had personally wanted the Army to have "independent coverage of the UDA", though Major General Jeapes disputes this.

According to the De Silva report: "the CLF, Major General Jeapes, [was] directly involved in, and sanctioned, A/05's attempts to re-recruit Nelson as a FRU agent."