Sean Anderson 32 years

Sean Anderson 32 years, Loughbracken Road, Pomeroy, County Tyrone, shot dead leaving his isolated home on 25 October 1991. Unionist/loyalist gunmen ambushed him as he drove his car in the lane-way leading to his home. The shooting happened about 9.30pm as he was on his way to his girlfriend’s home. The gunmen used automatic rifles similar to those brought in to the North in December 1987, with the help of British Intelligence. Mr Anderson, who was hit ten times, was a former H-Block prisoner who was released in 1988. He suffered constant harassment from the Royal Ulster Constabulary for a long period before his death. .

Paddy Askin 53 years, Monaghan town, County Monaghan, killed in a no-warning car bomb attack at Church Square, Monaghan town, on 17 May 1974. Seven people, including Mr Askin, died or were fatally injured in the blast. The Monaghan blast came an hour or so after three similar car bombs in Dublin, which claimed a further twenty-seven lives. Responsibility for the blasts, now the subject of an Irish Government inquiry, pointed to operatives within British military intelligence because of the detailed planning and co-ordination involved, and the type of explosives used. Although unionist/loyalist personnel were involved in placing of the bombs, the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) did not admit its role in the bombings until the mid-1990s.

Jim Bell 49 years, Chemical Street, Short Strand, east Belfast, shot dead by the UVF at his place of work, also in east Belfast, on 1 September 1993. Jim Bell was born and lived all his life in the Short Strand area. He married in the early 1970s but he and his wife Margaret had no children. Mrs Bell speaking to Relatives for Justice described her husband as a ‘easy going man, who would have harmed no one and got on with everybody.’ She said he loved animals, having at one time or other pigeons, dogs and a pony and trap....

Paul Blake 26 years, Jamaica Street, Ardoyne, north Belfast, shot dead in Berwick Road, Ardoyne, on 27 February 1981, by members of the Ulster Defence Association/Ulster Freedom Fighters. (UDA/UFF). Mr Blake was walking down Berwick Road when a car pulled along side him and gunmen inside the vehicle opened fire on him.

Two men were convicted in 1983 for their role in the killing. Both said UDA leader Jim Craig gave them a small amount of money for the killing. Craig, who was shot dead in 1987, was believed to have been a long-standing Crown force agent.

Trevor Bracknell 32 years, Cullyhanna, south Armagh, killed in a gun and bomb attack on Donnelly’s Public House at Silverbridge, also South Armagh, on 19 December 1975. Patrick Donnelly (24) and Michael Donnelly (14) also died in the attack. Mr Bracknell was married with three children.

The Red Hand Commando, a unionist paramilitary group, claimed the killings. However, many local people believe members of the RUC and the British army’s Ulster Defence Regiment carried it out. These allegations were supported in recent years in a number of newspaper articles and in evidence from a former member of the RUC.

Ronald Bunting 32 years, Downfine Gardens, Glen Road, west Belfast, shot dead in his home on 15 October 1980, along with Noel Lyttle. Both men were members of the Irish Republican Socialist Party (IRSP). Mr Bunting was married with three children.

A number of gunmen smashed their way into the Bunting home in the earlier hours of the morning using a sledgehammer. As well as shooting both men, Mr Bunting’s wife was also shot and seriously injured. Mrs Bunting said later that she had no doubt her husband was killed by members of the British army’s Special Air Service (SAS) regiment, as the killers were apparently well trained and knew what they were doing. Mr Bunting was a Protestant who became a republican at a young age. He was constantly arrested and harassed by the Crown forces for some time before his death.

James Burns 33 years, Rodney Drive, west Belfast, shot dead in his home during the early hours of 23 February 1981. He was widower with three children. Mr Burns was a well-known republican who was interned for several years during the early 1970s. The Ulster Volunteer Force claimed it carried out the killing, which took place in the shadow of a British Army observation and listening post on top of nearby flats.

Anne Byrne 35 years, Raheny, Dublin, killed in one of three no warning car bomb explosions in Dublin City centre on 17 May 1974. Mrs Byrne was married with two children. Twenty-seven people, including Mrs Byrne, died or were fatally injured in the Dublin blasts. A short time after the Dublin blasts a car bomb exploded in Monaghan town. In total thirty-three people died or were fatally injured in the blasts that day. Responsibility for the blasts, now the subject of an Irish Government inquiry, pointed to operatives within British military intelligence because of the detailed planning and co-ordination involved, and the type of explosives used. Although unionist/loyalist personnel were involved in placing of the bombs, the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) did not admit its role in the bombings until the mid-1990s.

Gerard Cairns 22 years, Bleary, Co. Armagh, shot dead along with his younger brother Rory in their home on the evening on 29 October 1993. The two young people were watching television and looking after their 11-year-old sister, who had been celebrating her 11th birthday, when two gunmen burst into their home and shot the two brothers dead. The UVF later claimed it carried out the killings. At this time the UVF in Co. Armagh was headed by Billy Wright, suspected of being an RUC Special Branch agent.
An account of the murders of Gerard and Rory Cairns - by the Cairns Family (1.32Mb)

*The above document is in Microsoft Word format. If you do not have a copy of Microsoft Word you can download the Microsoft Word reader file (3861Kb) for Windows 95/98 here.

Rory Cairns 18 years, Bleary, Co. Armagh, shot dead along with his older brother Gerard in their home on the evening on 29 October 1993. The two young people were watching television and looking after their 11-year-old sister, who had been celebrating her 11th birthday, when two gunmen burst into their home and shot the two brothers dead. . The UVF later claimed it carried out the killings. At this time the UVF in Co. Armagh was headed by Billy Wright, suspected of being an RUC Special Branch agent.

An account of the murders of Gerard and Rory Cairns - by the Cairns Family (1.32Mb)

*The above document is in Microsoft Word format. If you do not have a copy of Microsoft Word you can download the Microsoft Word reader file (3861Kb) for Windows 95/98 here.

(The Cairns were cousins of Sheena Campbell, a Sinn Fein activist, who was shot dead in Belfast in October 1992.)

Sheena Campbell 29 years, Lurgan, Co. Armagh, shot dead in the York Hotel, Belfast, on 16 October 1992. Miss Campbell, who had one child, was a law student at Queen’s University Belfast. A gunman entered the crowded hotel and shot his victim five times. It was later claimed by the UVF. The weapon used in the killing was a .357 Magnum revolver. The weapon was later recovered after two young men were arrested with the gun not far from the York Hotel some time later. It was revealed at a bail hearing for these men, held in March 1993, the weapon used to kill Miss Campbell was stolen from an RUC vehicle in the town of Newtownards.

Sheena Campbell was a member of Sinn Fein and had stood as a candidate for that party in the Upper Bann area in a Westminster Parliamentary by-election in 1990. Sinn Fein President Gerry Adams said the killing was “part of the ongoing campaign of murder against members of Sinn Fein, which has seen many of our friends killed or wounded.”

Adrian Carroll 24 years, Armagh City, Co. Armagh, shot dead outside his home on 8 November 1983. The young man had been on his way home from work when shot. The Protestant Action Force, a cover name for the UVF, claimed they carried out the killing.

For sometime before his killing Mr Carroll suffered from harassment from Crown forces. Several weeks after his killing thirteen members of the Ulster Defence Regiment were arrested in connection with it. All had been on duty in several vehicles on the day of the shooting, and near to the area where it was carried out. Five of the UDR men were initially charged in connection with the killing, but charges against one of them were withdrawn before trial. Four of the UDR men were convicted for the killing, but after a high profile campaign by leading Unionist politicians three of the UDR men were acquitted in the 1990s on the grounds that the RUC officers involved in their interrogation had added notes and rewrote part of the accused statements after the interrogation was over. The Judge at the appeal however said there ‘was no evidence the police concocted false confessions.’

One UDR soldier remained in jail for the killing until his release in the late 1990s. None of the RUC officers involved in the interrogations were ever charged with any offences connected with their interrogation methods.

William Carson 32 years, Rosevale Street, Cliftonville Road, north Belfast, shot and fatally injured in his home on the evening of 24 April 1979. He died in hospital several hours later.

The two gunmen responsible for the killing had called at Mr Carson’s home earlier that evening asking if he was in and were told by his two children that their father and mother were out. The same men called an hour later and sat with the children until their father and mother returned home and then shot Mr Carson in his hallway.

Danny Cassidy 40 years, Kilrea, Co. Derry, shot dead by UDA/UFF as he sat in his car in Kilrea on 2 April 1992. Mr Cassidy, who was married with four children, had been sitting in his car talking to a friend when another car drew up along side and masked gunmen opened fire on him. He was hit several times in the head and chest and died instantly. The shooting happened shortly after 3pm not far from the victim’s home....

Paddy Clarke Paddy Clarke 53 years, Cavehill Road, north Belfast, shot dead in his home in front of his family by the UDA/UFF on 2 February 1992. Mr Clarke was a leading member of Conradh na Gaeilge and a Falls Road black taxi driver.

Miriam Daly was 51 when she was murdered. Although the UFF claimed her murder, Jim still believes that there was higher involvement in her death. At the same time other leading H-Block campaigners such as John Turnley and Bernadette McAliskey were targeted. "She was very much to the notice of agencies that were poking their noses in here, for sure. "People called her in the middle of the night to come to an RUC station to help out, while relatives would phone her to find out where their loved ones were....

Brendan Davidson 33 years, Friendly Way, Markets area, south Belfast, shot dead in his home on 25 July 1988, by members of the UVF dressed in RUC uniforms, and using an AK47 assault rifle. The murder weapon was part of the huge haul imported into the North of Ireland from South Africa by unionist/loyalist paramilitaries, with the knowledge and the assistance of various British intelligence forces. Mr Davidson was a republican activist who served a prison sentence during the 1970s, and was held on remand for over two years on the word of a supergrass in the 1980s before he was released. In May 1987 Mr Davidson was shot four times in the arm and back in previous loyalist attack.

In late 1992 the BBC’s current affairs programme ‘Panorama’ revealed British Army intelligence files relating to Mr Davidson were supplied to the UVF by Brian Nelson, a UDA/UFF intelligence officer and British army agent.

Anthony Dawson 18 years, Madrid Street, Short Strand, east Belfast, shot dead by an off-duty RUC member on 12 December 1983. Anthony was standing at a street corner with friends when a car pulled up along side them and four shots were fired from the vehicle hitting Anthony. The RUC man who carried out the shooting was later arrested, and when his gun was shown to be the one used in the killing he was charged with murder. He claimed at his trial he had been drunk and had a row with his wife and drove off in a bad temper. Driving through the nationalist Short Strand area he said he spotted a social club he knew from patrolling the area and turned his car around, and coming upon the group of youths he opened fire.

The trial of the RUC man accused lasted only twelve minutes; he said he couldn’t remember much about the incident. He was convicted for the killing.

Joseph Dempsey 22 years, Hillman Street, New Lodge Road, north Belfast, killed along with his young wife Jeanette and 10 month baby girl Brigeen, in a unionist/loyalist paramilitary petrol bomb attack on their home in the early hours of 27 August 1976. The attack began when several members of the UDA/UFF broke a front downstairs window in the Dempsey home and threw in two petrol bombs.

Colette O’Doherty 21 years, Dublin, killed in one of three no warning car bomb explosions in Dublin city centre on 17 May 1974. Mrs O’Doherty was married with one child. Twenty-seven people, including Mrs O’Doherty, died or were fatally injured in the Dublin blasts. Shortly after the Dublin blasts a car bomb exploded in Monaghan town killing another seven people. In total thirty-three people died or were fatally injured in the blasts that day. Responsibility for the blasts, now the subject of an Irish Government inquiry, pointed to operatives within British military intelligence because of the detailed planning and co-ordination involved, and the type of explosives used. Although unionist/loyalist personnel were involved in placing of the bombs the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) did not admit its role in the bombings until the mid-1990s.

Thomas Joseph Donaghy 38 years, Kilrea, south Derry, shot dead on the morning of 16 August 1991 as he arrived for work at the Portna Eel Fishery on the banks of the River Bann.

Mr Donaghy was a former republican prisoner and Sinn Fein activist. Shortly before his death RUC members threatened his brother that Thomas would be dead before Christmas. Thomas constantly suffered from Crown force harassment, and even after his death mourners attending the Donaghy home and the funeral were verbally and physically abused.

At an inquest into his death, held in July 1994, the Donaghy family revealed a British Army covert surveillance camera was found in a hedge facing their home not long after Thomas’ death. At the hearing the RUC denied witnesses claims of two unmarked armoured RUC cars being seen parked near the scene of the shooting moments before it occurred. It was disclosed the killers used a pump-action shotgun and a revolver. However, the RUC said they had reasons not to give any information on the shotgun used. The revolver was recovered in 1992, but exactly where was not revealed. The Donaghy family believe the revolver was recovered in January 1992 after the arrest of several former members of the British army’s Ulster Defence Regiment in Ballymoney.

Patrick Donnelly 24 years, Silverbridge, south Armagh, killed in a gun and bomb attack on Donnelly’s Public House in Silverbridge on 19 December 1975.

Trevor Bracknell and Michael Donnelly (14) also died in the attack.

The Red Hand Commando, a unionist paramilitary group, claimed the killings, but many local people believe members of the RUC and the British army’s Ulster Defence Regiment carried out the attack. These allegations were supported in recent years in a number of newspaper articles and in evidence from a former member of the RUC.

Marie Drum 56 years, Andersonstown, west Belfast, vice-president of Sinn Fein, she was shot dead on 28 October 1976 while a patient in the Mater Hospital on the Crumlin Road, Belfast.

Mrs Drum was married with five children. Her killers entered the hospital in white coats and making their way to her ward shot her dead. The killing was reported later as a joint UDA-UVF operation.

Brian Duffy, 15 years, Wolfhill Avenue, Ligoniel, north Belfast, shot dead by UDA/UFF in a taxicab on the Ligoniel Road on 5 December 1993. John Todd, 31 years, a taxi driver was also killed in the attack. ...

Eileen Duffy 19 years, Meadowbank, Craigavon, Co Armagh, shot dead in a mobile shop in Craigavon on 28 March 1991. Two other people were killed in the attack, Katrina Rennie 16 years, and Brian Frizzell 29 years. Eileen worked in the mobile shop along with Katrina Rennie, who was her assistant. The small shop was situated in the Drumbeg housing estate, a nationalist’s area in Craigavon. It was just after 8.30pm when a van parked near the shop and a masked man carrying a handgun alighted and approached the shop. ...

Bobby Ewing 34 years, Deerpark Road, north Belfast, shot dead in his home on 12 October 1981, by the UDA/UFF. He was married with three children.

Mr Ewing was watching a news report on television of the funeral of Larry Kennedy, shot four days earlier by the same group, when a man walked into the living room. Mrs Ewing thought it was one of her son's friends. The man pulled out a gun and shot her husband four times at point blank range in the head. He fell dead in front of his wife. The gunman escaped. At an inquest an RUC detective said he suspected the motive could have been sectarian.

Patrick Fay 47 years, Dublin, killed in one of three no warning car bomb explosions in Dublin city centre on 17 May 1974. Mr Fay was married with one child. Twenty-seven people, including Mr Fay, died or were fatally injured in the Dublin blasts. A short time after the Dublin blasts a car bomb exploded in Monaghan town. In total thirty-three people died or were fatally injured in the blasts that day. Responsibility for the blasts, now the subject of an Irish Government inquiry, pointed to operatives within British military intelligence because of the detailed planning and co-ordination involved, and the type of explosives used. Although unionist/loyalist personnel were involved in placing of the bombs, the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) did not admit its role in the bombings until the mid-1990s.

Peadar Fagan, 20 years, Lurgan, County Armagh, shot dead on 17 November 1981 as he sat in a friend’s car on the outskirts of Lurgan. Another car drew alongside the victim’s car and men inside opened fire killing Peadar Fagan and wounding his friend. The UVF claimed the killing.

Shortly after the killing a UVF member in the area was arrested and decided to turn grass on his associates. Billy Wright, known in later years as ‘King Rat’ was charged with Mr Fagan’s killing. It was reported Wright and a colleague had planned to kill a man in Lurgan in retaliation for the shooting of Unionist MP Robert Bradford, but when they failed to detect the man decided to select Mr Fagan because he was a well-known GAA player in the area. The charges against Wright were withdrawn when the case collapsed after the withdrawal of evidence by the supergrass.

In the late 1980s and early 1990s Billy Wright controlled one of the most prolific of the unionist/loyalist killer squads in the North. Before and since Wright’s death in Long Kesh at the hands of the INLA in 1997, a lot of information has emerged linking Wright to elements inside the RUC, who it is stated assisted in variety of ways in many of Wright’s killings.

Patrick Finucane 38 years, Antrim Road, north Belfast, shot dead in his home on 12 February 1989 by the UDA/UFF. He was married with three children.

Mr Finucane was a successful and respected Belfast solicitor who was assassinated after years of death threats from the RUC Special Branch. His clients passed many of the threats on to him after their interrogation at RUC holding centres. His death came several weeks after a British Government Minister, Douglas Hogg, said at Westminster that a number of solicitors in Northern Ireland were known to be sympathetic to one or other terrorist organisation.

It has been revealed in the years since his death that British intelligence agent and UDA/UFF intelligence officer Brian Nelson had assisted the murder gang by supplying them with information on Mr Finucane’s movements. It is also suspected that RUC Special Branch agents were directly involved.

At an inquest into Mr Finucane’s killing in September 1990 it was revealed one of the weapons used was reportedly stolen from a British Army barracks at Holywood, Co. Down. After the hearing Mrs Finucane issued a statement directed at the British Government and the RUC, saying that ‘despite the ample evidence, allegations of collusion had never been investigated.’

Brian Frizzell 29 years, Ardhowen, Craigavon, Co Armagh, shot dead near a mobile shop in Craigavon on 28 March 1991. Two other people were killed in the attack, Katrina Rennie 16 years, and Eileen Duffy 19 years. ...

Eddie Fullerton 56 years, Buncrana, County Donegal, shot dead in his home on 25 May 1991. Mr Fullerton was a local Sinn Fein councillor and his killing was claimed by the UDA/UFF. The killer gang smashed their way into his home using a sledgehammer and shot him dead as he came down the stairs. The killing was well planned, with the gang abandoning a decoy car after the shooting near the border. It believed their true escape route was by boat across Lough Foyle.

In June 1991 British Independent Television screened a documentary by their ‘World in Action’ investigative team. The programme dealt with the increase in loyalist violence. It revealed that Mr Fullerton’s photograph and other details were contained in an RUC intelligence file found in the possession of the UDA/UFF in Derry City. Contained on the same file were the details of another Sinn Fein councillor John Davey. He was shot dead in February 1989 as he drove up the lane-way of his home in south Derry. Below Mr Davey’s photograph somebody had wrote, ‘Dead as a door nail.’

Nearly two years later, on 16 April 1993, Downtown Radio reported in a news report at 12noon that the weapon used to kill Mr Fullerton was used again in March 1993 at Castlerock, north Derry, when four men were shot dead. The weapon was found in Castlerock a few days afterwards. These weapons, two-9mm. Browning pistols, were part of a huge haul of weaponry brought into Ireland in 1988 from South Africa by unionist/loyalist paramilitaries with the assistance of several British military agents and intelligence operatives.

Tony Fusco 33 years, Falls Road, west Belfast, shot dead as he walked to work in Smithfield, central Belfast, on 9 February 1989. He was married with two children and his wife was expecting their third child at the time of his death. His killers fired from a passing motorcycle. The UVF claiming responsibility alleged Mr Fusco was an IRA member, which was rejected by his family.

Peter Gallagher 44 years, Toomebridge, Co. Antrim, shot dead by UDA/UFF as he arrived at his work in Belfast on 24 March 1993. Mr Gallagher, a married man with six children, worked in a construction yard for the Housing Executive at a site off the Grosvenor Road in west Belfast. He drove each morning from his home in Toomebridge to his work in Belfast, a distance of over twenty-five miles, arriving in work around 8am. His usually opened the yard every morning to load up dumper trucks, which were stored there overnight for the building site in Distillery Street....

John Francis Green 25 years, originally from Lurgan, County Armagh, found shot dead in a cottage near Castleblaney, County Monaghan, on 10 January 1975. Mr Green was an IRA member who was ‘on the run’ having escaped from Long Kesh prison. He had been staying at the cottage when gunmen burst in and shot him dead. Although the UVF claimed to have carried out the killing, evidence of British military intelligence involvement has emerged on numerous occasions over the years.

In the late 1990s a former RUC member, who was found guilty of the sectarian killing of County Antrim man William Strathearn in the 1970s, revealed in a detailed statement the names of three men involved in actual killing. They were; Robert McConnell a serving UDR soldier, later shot dead by the IRA, Robin Jackson a long standing British agent and member of the UVF who was involved in countless killings up until the 1990s. He has since died of cancer. The third, Harris Boyle was killed in a premature explosion during a combined operation between the UVF, UDR and British military intelligence, aimed at implicating the Miami Showband (an all male singing group) in the smuggling of explosives across the border for the IRA. The operation, which involved using British army vehicles and weapons, went wrong when the bomb, concealed inside a sound speaker, exploded as it was being placed in the back of the show band’s van after it was stopped and searched by an apparent British army patrol. Boyle and another man were killed, both were dressed in UDR uniforms. After the explosion other members of the gang shot three members of the show band dead. This occurred in July 1975.

During the 1980s claims of British Military Intelligence involvement in the killing of Mr Green also came from Fred Holroyd, a former member of British Intelligence. He said he was serving in County Armagh around the time of the killing and was shown a photograph of Mr Green lying dead in a pool of blood shortly after the shooting. He said British Army captain Robert Nairac showed him the photograph. Nairac also related details of the circumstances of the killing of John Green to him. The weapon used to kill Mr Green was also used in the Miami Showband killings.

Gerard Grogan 17 years, New Lodge Road, north Belfast, shot dead in his place of work along with Mrs Frances Donnelly and Mrs McGrattan on 2 October 1975. A fourth victim, Thomas Osborne (18) died from his wounds on the October 23. The notorious UVF gang the Shankill Butchers carried out the killings.

All the victims were at their work in wine and spirit bottling store in Millfield, near Belfast City centre, when the gunman burst in late in the evening. The two women killed, who were sisters, were forced to kneel and shot in the back of the heads. The two youths were shot in the storeroom. The UVF gang also robbed the premises.

Robert Hamill 25 years, Garvaghy Road, Portadown, County Armagh, beaten until he was unconscious by a loyalist mob in Portadown on 27 April 1997. He died in hospital on 8 May 1997. The beating took place in the early hours of the morning in full view of RUC members, who watched the attack from inside an RUC vehicle parked only yards away.

Mr Hamill had been out with several friends enjoying a social evening and after failing to get a taxi home decided to walk the short distance to the nationalist part of the town. One of those with the victim said they thought they would be safe because they could see an RUC vehicle in the street.

The RUC at first released a statement claiming the young man was injured during clashes between rival factions in the town. Later they admitted it was an attack on four people by a large crowd, but claimed they had not enough manpower to intervene.

The RUC later arrested and charge six men in connection with the killing but all were later released after the charges were withdrawn.

John Hardy 43 years, Ashton Street, New Lodge Road, north Belfast, shot dead in his home by the UVF on the afternoon of 28 August 1979. Mr Hardy was married with ten children.

Mr Hardy was shot in the chest when he answered a knock at his front door. Following the evidence of a UVF supergrass a man was later convicted for the killing. He said they had intended to kill a republican, but decided to kill Mr Hardy after they failed to detect the republican. Mr Hardy’s brother Ambrose was shot dead by the British army in February 1973.

Thomas Hughes 34 years, Lower Falls Road, west Belfast, shot in his taxi not far from his home, on 19 July 1991, by the UVF. Mr Hughes was a Falls Road black taxi driver and had only left his home to begin work when he was shot after stopping his vehicle at traffic lights at Divis Street. The shooting took place in full view of a sophisticated British Army observation and listening post on top of Divis Tower. Despite the killers fleeing the area Crown forces concentrated their follow-up operations in the area where the victim was shot.

Before his death Crown forces constantly harassed Mr Hughes. Relatives and friends arriving at the scene of the shooting were abused, and later when several went to collect his body from the morgue they were arrested by the RUC. At an inquest in July 1992 it was revealed that personal details on Mr Hughes contained on Crown force intelligence documents were found in a unionist/loyalist area. On the same document were similar details on Martin O’Prey, who was shot dead in the same area in August 1991.

One man was later charged in connection with withholding information about the hijacking of his taxicab, which was used to kill Mr Hughes. After his taxi was taken from him he sat drinking in a social club until told to inform police. He was later given a suspended sentence.

Edward (Eddie) Kane 29 years, New Lodge Road, north Belfast, one of fifteen people killed in a no-warning bomb attack on a McGurk’s Bar on 4 December 1971. Although apparent to many people the attack was the work of unionist/loyalist paramilitaries, the British Army Press office, Unionist politicians and much of the local Northern Ireland media maintained the blast was caused by the premature explosion of an IRA bomb inside the bar. This theory was continually espoused by the same sources for years afterwards. One British army bomb disposal officer even suggesting in his book that ‘terrorists were instructing IRA volunteers’ on bomb making inside the bar when the explosion occurred. This despite the evidence of numerous witnesses at an inquest in 1972, that those responsible arrived in a car, placed a box in the hallway and lit a fuse attached to it before driving off. It was not until the late 1970s, following the arrest and conviction of a UVF member for the blast, that the truth of who carried out the attack was accepted.

Mr Kane’s son William (20) was also killed by Unionist/Loyalist paramilitaries in January 1989 as he lay watching television in his home in the New Lodge area.

(Others killed in the blast; Philomena McGurk (46), Maria McGurk (14), James Cromie (13), Edward Keenan (69), Sarah Keenan (58), John Colton (49), Thomas McLoughlin (55), David Milligan (52), James Smyth (55), Francis Bradley (61), Thomas Kane (45), Philip Garry (73), Kathleen Irvine (45), Robert Charles Spotswood (38).

Edward Keenan 69 years, New Lodge Road, north Belfast, one of fifteen people killed in a no-warning bomb attack on a McGurk’s Bar on 4 December 1971. Although apparent to many people the attack was the work of unionist/loyalist paramilitaries, the British Army Press office, Unionist politicians and much of the local Northern Ireland media maintained the blast was caused by the premature explosion of an IRA bomb inside the bar. This theory was continually espoused by the same sources for years afterwards. One British army bomb disposal officer even suggesting in his book that ‘terrorists were instructing IRA volunteers’ on bomb making inside the bar when the explosion occurred. This despite the evidence of numerous witnesses at an inquest in 1972, that those responsible arrived in a car, placed a box in the hallway and lit a fuse attached to it before driving off. It was not until the late 1970s, following the arrest and conviction of a UVF member for the blast, that the truth of who carried out the attack was accepted.

(Others killed in the blast; Philomena McGurk (46), Maria McGurk (14), James Cromie (13), Edward Kane (29), Sarah Keenan (58), John Colton (49), Thomas McLoughlin (55), David Milligan (52), James Smyth (55), Francis Bradley (61), Thomas Kane (45), Philip Garry (73), Kathleen Irvine (45), Robert Charles Spotswood (38).

Larry Kennedy 35 years, Ardoyne, north Belfast, shot dead standing at the entrance to a social club in Ardoyne by the UDA/UFF on 8 October 1981. Mr Kennedy was an independent Belfast city councillor and had called to the club to buy some cigarettes. A function was going on at the time, and as the victim stood talking to a doorman the gunmen opened fired from outside the club. The doorman was also seriously wounded.

Sadie Larmour 44 years, Rodney Drive, Falls Road, shot and fatally wounded at her home by the UVF on 3 October 1979. She died in hospital a short time later. The gunman walked into her home and shot her in the chest as she sat in the living room with her mother and sister. The gunman did not speak and shot his victim again when she fell on the floor. The gunman also fired a shot at the other two women but missed.

Frederick Leonard 19 years, Madrid Street, Short Strand, east Belfast, shot dead along with Patrick Jago while at work on 7 May 1974. Both men were killed by the UDA/UFF as they sat in a workman’s hut at Newtownabbey, where they were working on repairing houses. Four others were injured in the attack. It was believed the same UDA/UFF death squad carried out several similar killings in the same area over a period of time.

No one was ever charged with the crime and the Leonard family are unaware if any police investigations were ever carried out into the killing. The Crown forces did not even contact the family to inform them Frederick had been murdered.

Jervis Lynch 26 years, Magherlin, Co. Armagh, found dead by his parents at their home on 6 January 1991. He had been shot three times in the head and body. His parents and sister had been at Mass that evening and found Jervis lying on the porch of their home when they returned. The RUC said they were treating the killing as a sectarian murder, and were trying to trace a car stolen from the car park at Glenavon F.C. in Lurgan around 7.20pm. Mr Lynch worked as a machine operator at a factory in Lurgan.

The UVF claimed responsibility for the murder and said their victim was a member of a republican group. This was totally rejected by his family. At an inquest into the killing in December 1991 it was revealed the bullets used were from a high velocity weapon. An RUC detective told the hearing that no one had been charged with the killing.

The weapon used by the gunmen in the murder was one of hundreds imported into the North of Ireland from South Africa in 1987 by unionist/loyalist paramilitaries, with the knowledge and the assistance of various British intelligence forces.

Noel Lyttle 45 years, west Belfast, shot dead in the home of Ronnie Bunting on 15 October 1980. Mr Bunting was shot dead in the same incident. Both men were members of the Irish Republican Socialist Party (IRSP). Mr Lyttle was also a leading member of the National H-Block Committee. A number of gunmen smashed their way into the Bunting home in the earlier hours of the morning using a sledgehammer.

As well as shooting both men dead, Mr Bunting’s wife was also shot and seriously injured. Mrs Bunting said later she had no doubt the men were killed by members of the British army’s Special Air Service (SAS) regiment, as the killers were apparently well trained and knew what they were doing.

Mr Lyttle had been released from the RUC’s Castlereagh Interrogation Centre several days previous to his killing.

Patrick McAllister 47 years, Rodney Drive, Falls Road, west Belfast, shot dead in his home by the UDA/UFF on 26 August 1986. Mr McAllister, who was married with four children, was watching television when the gunmen burst in. He was a taxi driver and worked driving a black taxi on the Falls Road. Several weeks before his killing the UFF had threaten black taxi drivers operating on the Falls Road.

Richard McCann 32 years, New Lodge Road, north Belfast, shot by the UVF, while at work, on 26 August 1975,. He died in hospital on 8 October 1975. He was married with two children. Mr McCann worked for Lagan Meats and was waiting in the cab of his delivery lorry at a petrol station when a gunman approached and shot him.

James McCaughey 13 years, Dungannon, County Tyrone, killed in a no-warning UVF car bomb attack on the Hillcrest Bar in Dungannon on 17 March 1976. Three others were also killed in the blast, Andrew Small (62), Joseph Kelly (57), and Patrick Barnard (13).

James and Patrick were playing in a street beside the bar when the blast occurred, while Mr Small was walking pass at the time, and Mr Kelly was inside the building. Eleven other people were injured.

Paul McCrory 23years, Beechfield Street, Short Strand, east Belfast, shot dead along with Marius O’Neill, on 8 November 1979. Both men were walking along a street in the Short Strand area when they came upon a man sitting on the bonnet of a car, moments later there was a burst of gunfire. Mr O’Neill was struck four times in the head and body and died instantly, while Mr McCrory, although wounded survived the initial burst of fire, but was shot dead in a side street only yards away as he tried to escape his killer. The UDA/UFF later claimed responsibility for the killing. A relative of Mr O’Neill said later that no one was ever charged with the shooting and the police investigation was ‘minimal’ and ‘police did not seem to bother much afterwards.’

Mervyn McDonald 26 years, Longlands Road, north Belfast, shot dead with his wife Rosaleen in their home by the UDA/UFF, on 9 July 1976. The couple had two children.

Rosaleen and Mervyn both had relatives living in the New Lodge Road area, which they visited regularly. Their visits put them under suspicion as the New Lodge Road was regarded as a republican district. On the 7th July a car drew up outside the McDonald's home, and a well-dressed man got out; he opened the gate and went up to the front door. Rosaleen answered the door and the man asked her would she be interested in an encyclopaedias. Rosaleen said she was not interested and the man went back to the car and drove off. He did not call at any other house in the street but drove directly to the Rathcoole housing estate. Rosaleen McDonald did not know her caller was a member of a UDA assassination squad and was carrying out a dummy run. He had timed how long it would take him to drive from the Rathcoole estate to the McDonald's home and back again. Two nights later the murder gang returned.

On the 9 July 1976, Mervyn McDonald was in the kitchen at the back of his house when the gunmen arrived. The car drew up and two men got out and went up the path to the McDonald's front door. One man was wearing an overcoat even though it was a summer's day. The other was wearing a jacket. They knocked at the door and when Rosaleen answered with the 18-month child in her arms, they asked for Mervyn and telling her they were from the New Lodge. Rosaleen thinking them friends of her husband’s let them into the house. Mervyn on hearing the voices came out of the kitchen. The man with the overcoat on immediately flipped a machine gun from around his back, slapped in a magazine and shot at Mervyn. He was hit four times in the head and fell dead on the floor. Rosaleen, deeply shocked, started shouting at the gunman ‘Why us? Why us?’ The gunman then levelled his gun at Rosaleen, pulled the baby from her arms, placed it in a playpen, and then shot Rosaleen four times. He removed the magazine from the gun, put it back up his coat and walked out to the car with his accomplice. The car drove off to the Rathcoole area. Back at the McDonald home the children were screaming when a neighbour went to see what was wrong. She found Rosaleen dead in the living room and Mervyn dead at the entrance to the kitchen. No one was ever charged with the crime and the police investigations were ‘decidedly restrained.’

Jack Holland the Author of "To Long a Sacrifice" was able to come from America and interview the man who carried out this crime. He said they were acting on information from police files.

Rosaleen McDonald 24 years, Longlands Road, north Belfast (See above)

John McErlane 29 years, Glengormley, north Belfast, shot dead along with his younger brother Thomas, on 23 May 1975. The Protestant Action Force, a cover name for the UVF, claimed the killings. The two young men worked for Lagan Meats and every Friday left work with several of their Protestant workmates to play cards in an apartment at Mount Vernon on the Shore Road. A number of men burst into the apartment and ordered those inside to lie on the floor, John and Thomas were then each shot in the head. The gunmen threatened those present to say nothing and stole money from the card game before they left the scene.

Thomas McErlane 19 years, Thompson Street, Short Strand, Belfast, shot dead along with his older brother John on 23 May 1975. The Protestant Action Force, a cover name for the UVF, claimed the killings. The two young men worked for Lagan Meats and every Friday left work with several of their Protestant workmates to play cards in an apartment at Mount Vernon on the Shore Road. A number of men burst into the apartment and ordered those inside to lie on the floor, John and Thomas were then each shot in the head. The gunmen threatened those present to say nothing and stole money from the card game before they left the scene.

Michael McHugh 35 years, Corgary, Castlederg, County Tyrone, shot dead by the UDA/UFF on the laneway of his home, on 21 January 1977. Mr McHugh was a former member of Sinn Fein and some time before his death received a letter warning him he had been put on a ‘vermin extermination list.’

Members of the Crown forces regularly harassed Mr McHugh, and his home was raided on a number of occasions.

In 1987, following the evidence of an informer, nine loyalists were arrested and charged with several murders and other crimes in the County Derry area. William Bredin, a former RUC member was found guilty of murdering Mr McHugh. Others in the gang were convicted for the murders of Kevin Mulhern in October 1976, and John Toland in November 1976. One of the gang, who was acquitted of murder, but jailed for five years for possession of weapons, was former UDR soldier David Hamilton. It was revealed that Hamilton had used his position in the UDR to transport weapons in British Army vehicles for the UDA/UFF around the Co. Derry countryside.

Henry McIlhone 32 years, Sheriff Street, Short Strand, east Belfast, shot and fatally wounded by unionist/loyalist gunmen on 27 June 1970. He died in hospital on 29 June. He was married with five children. The shooting took place in the grounds of St Matthew’s Catholic Church in east Belfast during a sustained attack on the building by unionist mobs and gunmen.

Mary (May) McKenna 55 years, Dublin, killed in one of three no warning car bomb explosions in Dublin City centre on 17 May 1974. Twenty-seven people, including Miss McKenna, died or were fatally injured in the Dublin blasts. Shortly after the Dublin blasts a car bomb exploded in Monaghan town killing another seven people. In total thirty-three people died or were fatally injured in the blasts that day. Responsibility for the blasts, now the subject of an Irish Government inquiry, pointed to operatives within British military intelligence because of the detailed planning and co-ordination involved, and the type of explosives used. Although unionist/loyalist personnel were involved in placing of the bombs the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) did not admit its role in the bombings until the mid-1990s.

Geraldine McKeown 14 years, Mountainview Gardens, Upper Crumlin Road, north Belfast, shot and wounded in her home on 6 December 1976 by members of the UVF. She died in hospital two days later. ...

Thomas McLoughlin 55 years, New Lodge Road, north Belfast, one of fifteen people killed in a no-warning bomb attack on a McGurk’s Bar on 4 December 1971. Although apparent to many people the attack was the work of unionist/loyalist paramilitaries, the British Army Press office, Unionist politicians and much of the local Northern Ireland media maintained the blast was caused by the premature explosion of an IRA bomb inside the bar. This theory was continually espoused by the same sources for years afterwards. One British army bomb disposal officer even suggesting in his book that ‘terrorists were instructing IRA volunteers’ on bomb making inside the bar when the explosion occurred. This despite the evidence of numerous witnesses at an inquest in 1972, that those responsible arrived in a car, placed a box in the hallway and lit a fuse attached to it before driving off It was not until the late 1970s, following the arrest and conviction of a UVF member for the blast, that the truth of who carried out the attack was accepted.

(Others killed; Philomena McGurk (46), Maria McGurk (14), James Cromie (13), Edward Kane (29), Sarah Keenan (58), John Colton (49), Edward Keenan (69), David Milligan (52), James Smyth (55), Francis Bradley (61), Thomas Kane (45), Philip Garry (73), Kathleen Irvine (45), Robert Charles Spotswood (38).

Patrick McMahon 23 years, Spamount Street, New Lodge Road, north Belfast, shot dead by members of the UDA/UFF in north Belfast, on 15 October 1993. Patrick McMahon was the second oldest in a family with five children. His mother Emily, speaking to Relatives for Justice, described him as a ‘great son’ and a ‘devoted father.’ She said her son, who was a painter and decorator, ‘hadn’t a bitter bone in his body. He would have stopped and helped anybody, no matter who or what they were.’ Patrick was also a fine boxer, a sport he had been involved in since he was a child. He boxed for the Star ABC boxing club, which was based in the New Lodge Road area, and where his father Jimmy also coached. During his time at the boxing she said her son travelled to many areas throughout the North of Ireland to take part in boxing tournaments, which brought him into unionist clubs, however this did not worry him she said as he had ‘no strong political views.’ ...

Paul McNally 26 years, Ardoyne, north Belfast, shot and fatally wounded by the UDA/UFF on 7 June 1976. He died in hospital two days later. Mr McNally and a friend had been in a bookmakers shop on the Crumlin Road and moments after emerging from the building a gunman-opened fire on them from the other side of the road, hitting both men. The other man survived his injuries.

Thomas McNulty 18 years, Madrid Street, Short Strand, east Belfast, shot dead as he walked home in the early hours of the 15 November 1981. Two members of the UVF on a motorcycle carried out the killing. Wounded in the initial burst of gunfire, he ran into another street, but the gunmen followed and shot him several times in the head when he collapsed.

The same weapon used to kill the youth was used a month earlier to kill a Catholic pensioner as she lay in bed in her home in the Markets area of south Belfast. The pensioner, Mary McKay, was killed in a failed attempt to kill a republican.

In the mid 1980s a UVF gang were convicted for the McKay killing, also the killing of Eugene Mulholland, Gerry O’Neill, Joseph Donegan and Patrick Murphy. Amongst those convicted for the killings was Frederick Neill, a UDR member from east Belfast. He was found guilty of driving the car used in the killing of Eugene Mulholland.

Gerard McWilliams 23 years, Andersonstown, west Belfast, accosted, kicked, beaten and stabbed to death by UDA/UFF members in the Donegal Road area on 29 September 1974.

Mr McWilliams had been living in England for a number of years and had been in Belfast four days when he was killed. He had been drinking with his brother in south Belfast and decided to make his way to his parent’s home in Andersonstown on foot. He was walking through the Donegal Road area in the early hours of the morning when he was stopped by a number of men, taken to an entry and killed.

Caoimhin MacBradaigh 30 years, Andersonstown, west Belfast, killed along with Thomas McErlean (20), and John Murray (26), in a UDA/UFF gun and bomb attack on the funerals of three republicans on 6 March 1988. The attack took place at Milltown Cemetery in west Belfast during the funerals of Mairead Farrell, Daniel McCann, and Sean Savage, who were all shot dead in Gibraltar by members of the British forces.

Michael Stone, who carried out the attack, used weaponry brought into Ireland from South Africa with the help of several British agents in January 1988. He was caught by the mourners as he tried to flee the scene and later arrested. He was charged with six murders, including the three victims at Milltown Cemetery. During his trial he stated he had read intelligence documents on some of his victims. It is believed the documents came from Crown force sources..

Fergus Magee 43 years, Kilmaine St, Lurgan, Co. Armagh, one of three men shot dead by the UVF as they came from their place of work at the Hyster forklift factory outside Lurgan on the night of 14 November 1991. The other two men killed were Desmond Rogers 43 years, and John Lavery 27 years. Mr Magee was getting a lift home in Mr Rogers’ car when they came upon what appeared to be a Crown Force roadblock. One of the men operating the roadblock used a red torch to stop on coming vehicles, several of which had already stopped before Mr Rogers halted his car. Moments after stopping a masked man wearing army fatigues and carrying an AK47 assault rife walked along the row of parked cars until he reached Mr Rogers’ vehicle and fired several bursts into the vehicle killing Mr Rogers instantly and fatally wounding Mr Magee. The driver in the car directly behind Mr Rogers’ vehicle, Mr Lavery, tried to reverse his car away from the scene but the gunmen fired on him. He died later in hospital. ...

Loughlin Maginn 28 years, Rathfriland, County Down, shot dead in his home on 25 August 1989. The UDA/UFF said they carried out the shooting, claiming that Mr Maginn was an IRA member. After his family rejected the allegation the UFF released a video showing Mr Maginn’s photograph and details contained on an RUC intelligence document. The video was taken inside a British army barrack. In 1992 two members of the British army’s Ulster Defence Regiment were convicted for their roles in the killing of Mr Maginn. For some time before his death Mr Maginn suffered from harassment and intimidation from members of the British Crown forces.

Antonio Magliocco 37 years, Dublin, killed in one of three no warning car bomb explosions in Dublin City centre on 17 May 1974. Mr Magliocco, an Italian, was married with three children. Twenty-seven people, including Mr Magliocco, died or were fatally injured in the Dublin blasts. Shortly after the Dublin blasts a car bomb exploded in Monaghan town killing another seven people. In total thirty-three people died or were fatally injured in the blasts that day. Responsibility for the blasts, now the subject of an Irish Government inquiry, pointed to operatives within British military intelligence because of the detailed planning and co-ordination involved, and the type of explosives used. Although unionist/loyalist personnel were involved in placing of the bombs the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) did not admit its role in the bombings until the mid-1990s.

Conor Maguire 22 years, Ligoniel, north Belfast, shot dead at his place of work, also at Ligoniel, on 29 April 1992. Mr Maguire was a former republican prisoner and member of the Irish Peoples Liberation Organisation (IPLO). He was constantly harassed by Crown forces, and was threatened by members of the RUC Special Branch shortly before his death that if he did not become an informer he would be shot dead by loyalists. The weapons used in the killing, an assault rifle and automatic pistol, were part of the haul brought to Ireland from South Africa in 1988 with the help of British intelligence agents.

At an inquest into the killing the victim’s mother said she was visited by the RUC at her home in 1990 and told her family were on a loyalist hit list.

In February 1993, a former UVF member, who served a prison sentence in the 1980s, was fined £2.000 and given a six month suspended sentence for allowing his car to be used in the killing. He said he was told to go for a drink while his taxicab was used.

Roseanne Mallon 70 years, Cullenrammer Road, near Dungannon, County Tyrone, shot dead in her sister’s home by UVF, on 8 May 1994. The weapons used in the killing were part of the haul brought to Ireland from South Africa in 1988 with the help of British intelligence agents.

The day before the killing two young boys disturbed a number of armed men in an old house near the scene of the shooting. The boys’ parents informed the RUC soon after the incident. After the shooting the RUC said the men were a hunting party. Two of Miss Mallon’s nephews, who lived in the house where she was shot, were regularly harassed by RUC members and threatened that their details would be sent to the UVF.

Residents living in the area where the gunmen’s car was abandoned after the shooting said none of them were questioned about the incident. Irish Catholic Cardinal, Cahal Daly, calling for an inquiry, said many questions remained unanswered.

In July 1992 two sophisticated surveillance cameras belonging to the British Army were found concealed in a grass bank overlooking the house where Miss Mallon died. Both cameras were pointed directly at the house, one trained on the kitchen window where the victim was standing when shot.

Larry Marley 41 years, Ardoyne, north Belfast, shot dead by the UVF in his home, on 3 April 1987. Crown forces regularly harassed Mr Marley, a former republican prisoner, before his death. The funeral of Mr Marley was held up for three days by the RUC, who harassed and beat mourners to ensure no republican emblems were displayed by the cortege.

Ann Marren 20 years, Dublin, killed in one of three no warning car bomb explosions in Dublin City centre on 17 May 1974. Twenty-seven people, including Miss Marron, died or were fatally injured in the Dublin blasts. Shortly after the Dublin blasts a car bomb exploded in Monaghan town killing another seven people. In total thirty-three people died or were fatally injured in the blasts that day. Responsibility for the blasts, now the subject of an Irish Government inquiry, pointed to operatives within British military intelligence because of the detailed planning and co-ordination involved, and the type of explosives used. Although unionist/loyalist personnel were involved in placing of the bombs the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) did not admit its role in the bombings until the mid-1990s.

Sam Marshall 31 years, Lurgan, County Armagh, shot dead by the UVF near his home, on 7 March 1990. Mr Marshall was a former republican prisoner, and at the time of his death was out on bail on possession of ammunition charges. Sometime before his death he was told by the RUC his files were in the hands of loyalists. On another occasion RUC members threatened him with death. On the night he was killed he and another man were coming from Lurgan’s RUC barrack, where he had to sign in as part of his bail conditions. The shooting took place in view of the RUC barrack.

A British television documentary on Channel 4 ‘Despatches’, shown in 1991, revealed a British military surveillance camera was found facing the home of Colm Duffy, who was with Mr Marshall when he was killed, and was believed to have been the intended target of the gunmen.

At an extradition hearing of an Irish republican in the USA in 1994, a senior RUC officer admitted that one of three unmarked cars in the area at the time of the shooting was in fact an RUC vehicle. The officer declined to explain the reason for its presence on the grounds of national security.

Ann Massey 21 years, Dublin killed in one of three no warning car bomb explosions in Dublin City centre on 17 May 1974.

Colm Mulgrew 26 years, Limestone Road, north Belfast, shot dead by UDA/UFF at his home on 5 June 1976. Mr Mulgrew, who was married, was a member of the Sinn Fein. Two UDA members convicted of the killing claimed at their trial they carried out the shooting in retaliation for an IRA bomb attack on a UDA bar on the Shankill Road. Two people died in the blast.

Eugene Mulholland 25 years, Ormeau Road, south Belfast, shot dead by UVF as he walked home along the Ormeau Road, on 19 September 1981. Some of the UVF gang responsible for the Mulholland killing were arrested and charged in the mid 1980s. They were also charged with the killings of Mary McKay, Gerry O’Neill, Joseph Donegan and Patrick Murphy. Frederick Neill, a UDR soldier from east Belfast, was found guilty of driving the car used in the killing of Eugene Mulholland.

Kevin Mulligan 27 years, Short Strand, east Belfast, shot and seriously wounded by UDA/UFF off the Beersbridge Road on July 17 1987. He died on 16 March 1988, only several weeks after he was released from hospital. Kevin was unmarried and lived with his parents in Clandeboye Gardens. He was the fourth child in a family of six children. His mother Annie speaking recently to Relatives For Justice described her son as a very thoughtful and caring young man. ‘He was a great help about the house’ she said. ‘He was also the joker of the family and was full of life.’ When he wasn’t at work he busied himself helping out at a nearby community centre, which catered mainly for pensioners in the area. ...

Ciaran Murphy 17 years, Ardoyne, north Belfast, adducted, badly beaten, and shot six times by UVF on 13 October 1974. His body was found on a laneway off the Hightown Road on the outskirts of north Belfast. It is believed he was bundled into a car in the Antrim Road area shortly after midnight. His body was found several hours later. A UVF member was convicted for his role in the killing in 1978. At his trial he admitted to driving the car and acting as look out. He said the youth was taken to a number of loyalist areas before he was shot.

Stephen Murphy 19 years, Oldpark Avenue, north Belfast, shot and fatally wounded by the UVF at his home on 14 November 1981. He died in hospital on 24 November 1981. He was shot answering a knock at the front door of his home late in the evening. The youth had been living in England and had only returned home several weeks earlier. A man was later convicted on charges connected to the killing.

Con Nesson 49 years, Cliftonville Road, north Belfast, accosted by UVF gang and beaten about the head with a hatchet on evening of 1 August 1976. He died shortly afterwards in hospital. The UVF gang responsible was the notorious Shankill Butchers.

Mr Nesson had been making his way home along the Cliftonville Road when a black taxi stopped just ahead of him and as he passed the vehicle a number of men got out of it and attacked him. Several members of the Shankill butcher gang were later convicted for their part in Mr Nesson’s death.

Rosemary Nelson 40 years, Lurgan, County Armagh, a human rights lawyer, she was killed when a booby-trap bomb exploded under her car as she drove from her home on 15 March 1999. She was married with three children. The Red Hand Defenders, a cover name for number of unionist/loyalist paramilitary groupings, claimed they carried out the killing.

Mrs Nelson was a highly efficient and respected lawyer who was involved in a number of high profile cases in the Lurgan area. Her ability to do her job resulted in her becoming a hate figure for the RUC Special Branch, who threatened her on a numerous occasions, and told some of her clients during interrogations that she was going to die.

After the threats and other incidents Mrs Nelson complained to the RUC. She also told a United Nations inquiry in 1998 of the death threats. The United Nations special investigator Param Cumaraswamy, speaking after her death, said he had feared for her life.

Malcolm Nugent 20 years, Cappagh, County Tyrone, shot dead by the UVF at Cappagh along with Dwayne O’Donnell, John Quinn and Thomas Armstrong, on 3 March 1991.

Mr Nugent, O’Donnell, and Quinn, were in a car returning from a Gaelic football match and had only pulled up outside a public house in Cappagh when a car containing a number of heavily armed UVF men also pulled up outside the same building. The gunmen immediately opened fire on the car. Two of the men were shot dead inside the car while Dwayne O’Donnell was shot dead as he fled the vehicle. The gunmen then approached the pub, and failing to get inside, fired through the windows killing Mr Armstrong.

The weapons used by the gunmen were part of a huge haul of weaponry brought into Ireland from South Africa in 1988, by unionist/loyalist paramilitaries with the assistance of several British military agents and intelligence operatives.

At an inquest for the victims held in 1994 the coroner rejected the statements of thirty-four local people who witnessed the shootings, and the suspicious activity by Crown forces before and after the shooting. Some of the information rejected revealed that British soldiers had visited the public house a week before the shooting and made drawings and diagrams of the layout of the interior of the building. The RUC said two of the weapons used in the killing were used previously in killings at Lurgan, Cookstown and Stewartstown; who the victims were was not disclosed.

A British television documentary on Channel 4 ‘Despatches’, shown later in 1991, detailed extensive collusion between Crown forces and unionist/loyalist paramilitaries in the Cappagh and other killings.

Because the three young men arrived at the scene on the spur of the moment it is unlikely they were the intended targets of the gunmen. It was believed the gunmen had intended to shoot a leading republican who visited in the public house.

Dwayne O’Donnell 17 years, Cappagh, County Tyrone, shot dead by the UVF at Cappagh along with Malcolm Nugent, John Quinn and Thomas Armstrong, on 3 March 1991.

Mr O’Donnell, Nugent, and Quinn, were in a car returning from a Gaelic football match and had only pulled up outside a public house in Cappagh when a car containing a number of heavily armed UVF men also pulled up outside the same building. The gunmen immediately opened fire on the car. Two of the men were shot dead inside the car while Dwayne O’Donnell was shot dead as he fled the vehicle. The gunmen then approached the pub, and failing to get inside, fired through the windows killing Mr Armstrong.

The weapons used by the gunmen were part of a huge haul of weaponry brought into Ireland from South Africa in 1988, by unionist/loyalist paramilitaries with the assistance of several British military agents and intelligence operatives.

At an inquest for the victims held in 1994 the coroner rejected the statements of thirty-four local people who witnessed the shootings, and the suspicious activity by Crown forces before and after the shooting. Some of the information rejected revealed that British soldiers had visited the public house a week before the shooting and made drawings and diagrams of the layout of the interior of the building. The RUC said two of the weapons used in the killing were used previously in killings at Lurgan, Cookstown and Stewartstown; who the victims were was not disclosed.

A British television documentary on Channel 4 ‘Despatches’, shown later in 1991, detailed extensive collusion between Crown forces and unionist/loyalist paramilitaries in the Cappagh and other killings.

Because the three young men arrived at the scene on the spur of the moment it is unlikely they were the intended targets of the gunmen. It was believed the gunmen had intended to shoot a leading republican who visited in the public house.

Michael O’Dwyer 24 years, Falls Road, west Belfast, shot dead by a RUC member at a Sinn Fein office on the Falls Road, on 4 February 1992. Two other men, Paddy Loughran (61) and Patrick McBride (40), were also killed. Two other people were injured.

The RUC member responsible, Constable Alan Moore, entered the office in plain clothes armed with a pump-action shotgun, which he hid inside a bag. He apparently intended killing leading members of Sinn Fein but after a short time in a waiting room opened fire.

Mr O’Dwyer was in the waiting room with his young child when he was shot at point blank range. Moore escaped in his own car, which was parked out side the office. He then drove some twenty miles to Ballinderry, on the shores of Lough Neagh, where he reportedly shot himself with the same shotgun. Before his death he made two phone calls to RUC officers at Musgrave and Newtownabbey barracks.

At an inquest into Moore’s death in 1993 it was revealed that bomb-making material found at his home was similar to that sent to a number of nationalists in County Antrim in 1991. These bomb attacks were claimed at the time by the UFF.

Mr O’Dwyer’s mother, Sarah, was killed in a no-warning UVF bomb attack on a bar in the New Lodge Road area of Belfast in January 1976.

Harry O’Neill 60 years, Short Strand area, east Belfast, shot dead by UDA/UFF at his place of work on 10 August 1994. Harry O’Neill was a married man with five grown up children, four girls and one boy. One of his daughters’ Liz, speaking recently to Relatives for Justice, described her father as a hard workingman who was also very religious. Most of his working life he spent in the employment of Richardson’s Fertilisers, working in the old ‘Bone Yard’ site on the Short Strand and later at the docks, where the firm relocated in the late 1960s. ...

Marius O’Neill 23 years, Mountpottinger Road, Short Strand, east Belfast, shot dead along with Paul McCrory, on 8 November 1979. Both men were walking along a street in the Short Strand area when they came upon a man sitting on the bonnet of a car, moments later there was a burst of gunfire. Mr O’Neill was struck four times in the head and body and died instantly, while Mr McCrory, although wounded survived the initial burst of fire, but was shot dead in a side street only yards away as he tried to escape his killer. The UDA/UFF later claimed responsibility for the killing. A relative of Mr O’Neill said later that no one was ever charged with the shooting and the police investigation was ‘minimal’ and ‘police did not seem to bother much afterwards.’

Arthur Penn 33 years, Altcar Street, Short Strand, east Belfast, killed in a no-warning UVF bomb attack on the Strand Bar on 12 April 1975. Four others, Agnes McAvoy (62), Mary McAleavey (57), Elizabeth Carson (66) and Mary Bennett (42) were also killed. A sixth victim, Michael Mulligan (33), died a week later.

The UVF gang entered the bar and opened fire on the customers before throwing a bomb. As they were leaving they wedged a wooden pole through the handles of the main doors, cutting of any chance of escaping.

One man was later arrested and charged in connection with the attack, but was acquitted at trial.

Marie Phelan 20 years, Dublin, killed in one of three no warning car bomb explosions in Dublin City centre on 17 May 1974.

John Quinn 23 years, Cappagh, County Tyrone, shot dead by the UVF at Cappagh along with Dwayne O’Donnell, Malcolm Nugent and Thomas Armstrong, on 3 March 1991.

Mr Quinn, O’Donnell, and Nugent, were in a car returning from a Gaelic football match and had only pulled up outside a public house in Cappagh when a car containing a number of heavily armed UVF men also pulled up outside the same building. The gunmen immediately opened fire on the car. Two of the men were shot dead inside the car while Dwayne O’Donnell was shot dead as he fled the vehicle. The gunmen then approached the pub, and failing to get inside, fired through the windows killing Mr Armstrong.

The weapons used by the gunmen were part of a huge haul of weaponry brought into Ireland from South Africa in 1988, by unionist/loyalist paramilitaries with the assistance of several British military agents and intelligence operatives.

At an inquest for the victims held in 1994 the coroner rejected the statements of thirty-four local people who witnessed the shootings, and the suspicious activity by Crown forces before and after the shooting. Some of the information rejected revealed that British soldiers had visited the public house a week before the shooting and made drawings and diagrams of the layout of the interior of the building. The RUC said two of the weapons used in the killing were used previously in killings at Lurgan, Cookstown and Stewartstown; who the victims were was not disclosed.

A British television documentary on Channel 4 ‘Despatches’, shown later in 1991, detailed extensive collusion between Crown forces and unionist/loyalist paramilitaries in the Cappagh and other killings.

Because the three young men arrived at the scene on the spur of the moment it is unlikely they were the intended targets of the gunmen. It was believed the gunmen had intended to shoot a leading republican who visited in the public house.

John Reavey 24 years, Whitecross, south Armagh, shot dead by the UVF in his home along with his brother Brian (22) on 4 January 1976. Another brother Anthony (17) was fatally injured in the same attack and died on 30 January 1976.

Six gunmen, using automatic weapons were involved, entered the house via the front door, which had a key in the lock. When the gunmen appeared the brothers remained seated, thinking the intruders were members of the British Crown forces because of their attire and equipment. However, one of the gunmen suddenly shot John Reavey with a pistol as he sat on a chair. The other two brothers jumped up and made for a back room as the gunmen opened fire with machineguns after them. Brian was hit and killed as he fled, while Anthony, who was also hit several times, managed to get under a bed as the gunmen continued firing. The gunmen, thinking they had also killed Anthony, then left the house. Although badly injured, Anthony managed to crawl a considerable distance from his home to a neighbour’s to raise the alarm.

Less than fifteen minutes after the attack a similar attack occurred at Gilford, County Down, when three members of the O’Dowd family were killed. The two attacks were apparently co-ordinated.

At an inquest into the killing of the Reavey brothers it was revealed many of the bullets fired at the brothers came from Sterling sub-machine guns; a standard British military issue weapon at that time.

Anthony Reavey 17 years, Whitecross, south Armagh, shot and fatally wounded by the UVF in his home on 4 January 1976. He died on 30 January 1976. Two of his brothers John and Brian were killed in the same incident. (See Above)

Brian Reavey 22 years, Whitecross, south Armagh, shot dead by the UVF along with his brother John (24) in their home on 4 January 1976. Another brother Anthony (17) was fatally injured in the same attack and died on 30 January 1976. (See Above).

Alexander Reid 20 years, Ardoyne, north Belfast, taken from a taxi on the Shankill Road and beaten to death by UDA/UFF gang on 4 January 1980.

Mr Reid and a friend had been in Belfast city centre and decided to take a black taxi home along the Shankill Road; however, when the vehicle stopped near a loyalist club the two young men were pulled from the vehicle. Mr Reid’s friend was able to wrestle himself free from his captures and ran off. Mr Reid was then taken into a back alleyway and beaten to death with breezeblocks.

Katrina Rennie 16 years, Meadowbank, Craigavon, Co Armagh, shot dead in a mobile shop in Craigavon on 28 March 1991. Two other people were killed in the attack, Eileen Duffy 19 years, and Brian Frizzell 29 years. Katrina worked in the mobile shop as an assistant to Eileen Duffy. The small shop was situated in the Drumbeg housing estate, a nationalist’s area in Craigavon. It was just after 8.30pm when a van parked near the shop and a masked man carrying a handgun alighted and approached the shop. ...

Francis Rice 17 years, Castlewellan, County Down, found stabbed to death near Rathfriland on 18 May 1975. He had left his home the previous evening with his brother but they later parted company. He was last seen alive in Castlewellan near midnight on the same evening. People returning from church services the next morning found his body. The stab wounds were so extensive the RUC first believed he had been shot. The Protestant Action Force, a cover name for the UVF, claimed they carried out killing. Three men were convicted for the killing in 1981.

Dessie Rogers 43 years, Pinebank, Lurgan, Co. Armagh, one of three men shot dead by the UVF as they came from their place of work at the Hyster forklift factory outside Lurgan on the night of 14 November 1991. The other two men killed were Fergus Magee 28 years, and John Lavery 27 years. Mr Rogers was giving Mr Magee a lift home in his car when they came upon what appeared to be a Crown Force roadblock. One of the men operating the roadblock used a red torch to stop oncoming vehicles, several of which had already been stopped before Mr Rogers halted his car. Moments after stopping a masked man wearing army fatigues and carrying an AK47 assault rife walked along the row of parked cars until he reached Mr Rogers’ vehicle and fired several bursts into the vehicle killing Mr Rogers and fatally wounding his passenger Mr Magee. The driver in the car directly behind Mr Rogers, Mr Lavery, tried to reverse his car away from the scene but the gunmen fired on him. He died later in hospital. ...

Liam Ryan 39 years, Ardboe, Co. Tyrone, shot dead by the UVF in the Battery Bar on 30 November 1989. Michael Devlin 33 years, also from Ardboe, was killed in the same incident. Mr Ryan, who was married, was the owner of the Battery Bar situated near Ardboe on a small peninsula jutting out into Lough Neagh, which had only one access road leading to the bar.

On the night the gunmen struck, a dart competition was taking place and the bar was relatively full. Shortly before closing time several of the customers, including Mr Ryan and Mr Devlin were in the hall of the premises when two gunmen approached the building. When they saw the men in the hallway they immediately opened fire wounding Mr Ryan and Mr Devlin and another man. ...

Michael Scott 10 years, Oldpark Avenue, north Belfast, killed along with his grandmother Mary Smyth when a bomb exploded outside their home in the early hours of 12 February 1978. The house caught fired and both victims were burned to death. Mrs Smyth’s son was also in the house at the time but was unable to reach his mother because of the intensity of the fire. Mrs Smyth’s son was arrested by the RUC and forensic tests carried out on his hands and pyjamas. The insinuation being he was making a bomb in his mother’s home at 4am on a Sunday morning when the device exploded prematurely. It was some time before the RUC finally admitted the attack was carried out by unionist/loyalist paramilitaries, believed to be the UVF, who placed a bomb against the front door of the house with the intention of killing everyone inside.

Mrs Smyth also had a son, Brendan Smyth, shot dead by the British Army in Ardoyne in 1973.

Patrick Shanaghan 31 years, Aghyaran, Castlederg, County Tyrone, shot dead on his way to work by UDA/UFF on 12 August 1991. The killing followed 6 years of constant harassment from the Crown Forces, being assaulted and threatened with death on numerous occasions. He stood as a Sinn Fein candidate in the 1989 local elections. He was also told by the RUC that his personal details were in the hands of unionist/loyalist paramilitaries after a photomontage was lost from a British army vehicle. The assault rifle used by the gunman in the killing was part of a huge haul of weaponry brought into Ireland from South Africa in 1988 by unionist/loyalist paramilitaries with the assistance of several British military agents and intelligence operatives.

Mr Shanaghan’s relatives and friends accused the RUC of colluding in the young man’s death.

At an inquest into the killing was held in 1996. RUC members called to give evidence could not account for the strange activities of several of their members immediately after the shooting. A lawyer for the Shanaghan family accused the RUC of preventing medical treatment of the victim after the shooting. The Shanaghan family’s lawyer walked out of the hearing after he was refused permission to submit a dossier of evidence relating to the killing.

An independent public inquiry was held the same year at Castlederg, presided over by the Honourable Andrew I Somers Jr, an American legal expert, who concluded: ‘I have never seen a case where all the evidence loudly points to one conclusion. Patrick Shanaghan was murdered by the British government and more specifically with the collusion of the police. I would not hesitate to indict members of the RUC from top to bottom.’

James (Jim) Sloan 19 years, New Lodge Road, an IRA activist, he was shot dead by UDA/UFF gun on the New Lodge Road on 3 February 1973. Mr Sloan was standing along with another IRA activist, James McCann (18), when a car pulled along side them and opened fire. Mr McCann died several hours later. After the gunmen drove off British soldiers on top of near by flats fired on people going to their aid. Four other people, Anthony Campbell (19), Ambrose Hardy (26), Brendan Maguire (33), and James Loughran, were killed in this firing.

Mary Smyth 70 years, Oldpark Avenue, north Belfast, killed along with her grandson Michael Scott when a bomb exploded outside their home in the early hours of 12 February 1978. The house caught fired and both victims were burned to death. Mrs Smyth’s son was also in the house at the time but was unable to reach his mother because of the intensity of the fire. Mrs Smyth’s son was arrested by the RUC and forensic tests carried out on his hands and pyjamas. The insinuation being he was making a bomb in his mother’s home at 4am on a Sunday morning when the device exploded prematurely. It was some time before the RUC finally admitted the attack was carried out by unionist/loyalist paramilitaries, believed to be the UVF who placed a bomb against the front door of the house with the intention of killing everyone inside.

Mrs Smyth also had a son, Brendan Smyth, shot dead by the British Army in Ardoyne in 1973.

Liam Paul Thompson 25 years, Dermot Hill, west Belfast, shot dead by the UFF while a passenger in a friends’ car at Springfield Park on 27 April 1994. On the night of his death Mr Thompson was with his friend, Paddy Elley, a taxi driver. Around 11.30pm the two men were in Mr Elley’s car, Mr Thompson in the passenger seat, when it was driven into Springfield Park, a cul-de-sac off the Springfield Road near the Ballymurphy area in west Belfast. ...

Brenda Turner 21 years, Dublin, killed in one of three no warning car bomb explosions in Dublin City centre on 17 May 1974. Twenty-seven people, including Miss Phelan, died or were fatally injured in the Dublin blasts. Shortly after the Dublin blasts a car bomb exploded in Monaghan town killing another seven people. In total thirty-three people died or were fatally injured in the blasts that day. Responsibility for the blasts, now the subject of an Irish Government inquiry, pointed to operatives within British military intelligence because of the detailed planning and co-ordination involved, and the type of explosives used. Although unionist/loyalist personnel were involved in placing of the bombs the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) did not admit its role in the bombings until the mid-1990s.

John Turnly 44 years, Carnlough, County Antrim, an Irish Independence Party councillor, he was shot dead by the UDA/UFF as he arrived at a public meeting at Carnlough on 4 June 1980. Mr Turnly was also a prominent member of the National H-Block Committee, a support group for protesting republican prisoners.

In October 1980 a number of men were arrested in connection with the killing. Amongst those arrested were two soldiers in the UDR. Three men were convicted for their roles in the killing in 1982. The two UDR soldiers were convicted on lesser charges of minding the guns used in the attack.

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