The former paratrooper known as Soldier F has been cleared of all charges relating to two killings and five attempted murders on Bloody Sunday.
There were angry scenes outside the Belfast court house as those attending the court made their way out.
The Northern Ireland Veterans’ Commissioner David Johnstone welcomed the verdict. He was heckled as he delivered a statement.
He said it called into “sharp focus” the division the events from Northern Ireland’s past continue to have.
He said the admission of hearsay evidence raised concerns during the trial.
“Society in Northern Ireland must find way to delay with legacy issues in a fair and balanced way,” he said.
Michael McKinney, representing the Bloody Sunday families, said blame lay with the British state, the RUC and the Army.
He said “Soldier F leaves not through the front door of this court house…but once his curtain is peeled back…out the back door.”
Delivering his judgment at Belfast Crown Court, Judge Patrick Lynch said the evidence presented against the veteran fell well short of what was required for conviction.
Soldier F had been accused of the murders of James Wray and William McKinney on Bloody Sunday in January 1972, regarded as one of the darkest days of the Troubles in Northern Ireland.
