The North's Police Chief Constable, Sir Ronnie Flanagan, has said he is considering legal action to have the Police Ombudsman's report on the Omagh bomb investigation quashed.
Describing Ms Nuala O'Loan's conclusions as "wild, sweeping and gross", Sir Ronnie said his confidence in the Ombudsman's office had been "seriously shaken".
"So gross is this report that legal advice is being taken both on a personal and organisational basis. On an organisational basis we are considering whether it may be appropriate to take legal remedy to have this report quashed," he stated.
If the report's conclusion that "failed leadership" was partly to blame for the investigation's shortcomings, had been the result of a rigorous investigation he would "not only resign immediately but publicly commit suicide", a visibly emotional Chief Constable added.
While not calling for Ms O'Loan to resign, Sir Ronnie was scathing about those on her team responsible for compiling the report, who he said had little knowledge of how paramilitary groups operated.
"I am not going to personalise this at all. I am talking about the Office [of the Ombudsman] and the people who carried out this investigation, people who today laid out their credentials . . . In terms of my limited interaction with them I have to say I am astounded by the ignorance that they are displaying in terms of how terrorist organisations operate.
"My confidence in the ability of the Ombudsman's office to conduct a rigorous and thorough investigation has been really shaken . . . If I am to be treated like this, if I have these public suggestions about leadership and judgment made without them ever having been drawn to my attention, how can I trust that investigation?"
The Chief Constable said the report was one of an "erroneous conclusion reached in advance", which was followed by a "desperate attempt to find anything that might happen to fit in with that erroneous conclusion and a determination to exclude anything th at does not fit in with it".
"It is so gross in terms of its lack of rigour, in terms of its basic unfairness, reaching wild and sweeping conclusions about myself and about other colleagues without any of us ever having been spoken to, without any of us ever having been given the opportunity to give a response in terms of replying to those gross, grave, serious allegations," he insisted.
Sir Ronnie was also critical of the fact that his request to respond to Ms O'Loan's report by next Wednesday had been turned down in an "utterly unreasonable" way.
"I have always intended to give this report a full and considerate response. I made a perfectly reasonable request for a suitable time in which to give the report that. That reasonable request was dismissed out of hand.
"We will do our very best to conclude our research, to present our detailed and considered response by that date [next Wednesday] but I have to say the report is so far off the mark that I am not certain it can be concluded by that time."
The Chief Constable said the RUC's internal review document into the Omagh investigation, which was drawn up by "very experienced officers", had been taken out of their hands and "thrown back at them".
"This document was supposed to be a positive approach to an investigation to assist the senior investigating officer to perhaps identify new lines of inquiry. I am not suggesting that the approach to that review has been perfect . . . Merseyside Police might take up these matters so as to hopefully give some reassurance to the families".