Published Thursday, 11 August 2011
Billy McKavanagh, 21, was shot dead in the Markets area of Belfast on 11 August 1971.
The Historical Enquiries Team, which examined the circumstances surrounding the killing, said that he was shot in the back as he ran away when confronted by soldiers.
The soldier responsible maintains that the person he shot was armed.
At the time the British Army claimed the young catholic man was an IRA gunman.
However, the IRA said that neither he, nor his brother or cousin who were arrested after the shooting were members of the IRA.
The HET said Mr McKavanagh was not carrying the weapon, a rivet gun, which had been looted and left lying in the street and was picked up by members of his group.
Billy's death was an absolute tragedy that should not have happened.
HET report
"He was an innocent man who nothing more than pick up a pair of waders that had been stolen by someone else and then run away when confronted by the army."
Oliver Morris, brother-in-law of the victim, said the family is not looking for compensation.
"It's just an apology we want."
"I would be very disappointed, on behalf of the family, if we did not get a full apology on behalf of the Government," he said.
"We are not looking for a judicial review or compensation."
SDLP South Belfast MP Alasdair McDonnell,, who knows the family well, said he fully supported its stance in seeking a formal apology from the army.
"This report confirms what people in the area have known since that day - that he was an innocent man gratuitously shot by the army - then lied about," he said.
South Belfast Sinn Féin MLA Alex Maskey has also echoed the call.
"Billy McKavanagh was an unarmed man shot dead by the British Army in cold blood," he said.
"For 40 years the British State has stuck to the lie that Billy McKavanagh was an armed IRA volunteer. The HET report today lays this lie bare.
"The British State now needs to act on this HET report, accept the reality of the situation and apologise to the McKavanagh family."