Members of the Cloughfern Young Conquerors dressed in uniform accompanied the coffin. Each were accused of taxing drug dealers and stealing tens of thousands of pounds from UVF coffers. Gary Fisher became brigadier following the murder in 2003 of his predecessor John 'Grug' Gregg, but he is known to be looking for a way out of the organisation. Tommy Lyttle suspected that Craig had helped the IRA kill South Belfast UDA Brigadier, John McMichael in December 1987 not long after McMichael had aired complaints within the UDA hierarchy and in Craig's earshot, about Craig's dubious business dealings. Widely known as a man with a fearsome reputation, Gregg was considered a "hawk" in some loyalist circles. A rebel UDA unit is re-arming in a grim warning to rival drug dealers. New IRA powerbase just 20 miles away so why didnt intelligence flag possible attack? [31], On 1 February 2003, along with another UDA member, Robert "Rab" Carson, Gregg was shot dead on Nelson Street, in the old Sailortown district near the Belfast docks, while travelling in a taxi after returning from Glasgow where he regularly went to Rangers F.C. 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He's crossed a line and there are figures in the UDA who won't forget.". In November 2011, Stuart Gregg received 400,000 compensation for psychological trauma due to having witnessed his fathers murder. [10] The attack is commemorated in the song South East Antrim Brigade by loyalist singer Rab C, many of whose compositions were about the brigade and its leading members. [9] Greggs fearsome reputation earned him the nickname the Reaper and he bore a tattoo of the Grim Reaper on his back as a tribute. Three men were acquitted of his murder. Following the conclusion of the feud with Adair the UDA reconstituted its ceasefire in what they christened the Gregg initiative. [63] At least one journalist was warned of a possible under car booby trap. Greggs killing proved to be the undoing of Adair. A UDA member originally from the Woodvale Road had moved to Rathcoole where he had been beaten up after it emerged that he was a friend of Joe English, the former brigadier who had been exiled from the estate by Gregg for his anti-drugs stance. [23] Trevor Lowry (aged 49) was beaten to death in Glengormley by UDA members under Gregg's command on 11 April 2001 after he was mistaken for a Catholic. He will have run the crime gang . [11], As brigadier Joe English enjoyed, theoretically, more power than his predecessor, as Andy Tyrie had been removed from the UDA leadership and replaced by a collective leadership of the movement's six brigadiers, including English. Adams was hit five times in the attack but the taxi rushed to the Royal Victoria Hospital where he received treatment and survived. [11] Each geographical area was commanded by a UDA 'Brigadier' and sometimes also had a designated 'Military Commander', 'Intelligence Officer' and 'Quartermaster'. Dissident groups and LVF-linked mobsters have also moved in to claim a slice of the action. Gregg took this as a threat and, after complaining to senior figures in the West Belfast UDA, ordered the three men to be kneecapped. From the 1990s until his shooting death in 2003 by rival associates, Gregg served as brigadier of the UDA's South East Antrim Brigade. The veteran loyalist, who was 'brigadier' of its South East Antrim unit, was kicked out of the organisation last week. [17] Protestant Trevor Lowry (aged 49) was beaten to death in Glengormley by UDA members under Gregg's command on 11 April 2001 after he was mistaken for a Catholic. It is claimed they control "100%" of an illegal drugs network in south-east Antrim, Northern Ireland. Will the Windsor Framework be enough for the DUP? The South East Antrim UDA's tally of violence spanning two decades includes a roll call of unsolved murders. Law enforcement agencies see the loosening of Fisher's control as an opportunity. 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Gregg when explaining his family background, revealed that his father, regarded as a quiet man, had trust in the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) and British Army but joined the loyalist vigilante groups set up around the start of the Troubles ostensibly to protect the Protestant community from attacks by republicans. [28] Soon after two pipe bombs were thrown at Gregg's house, and his friend Tommy Kirkham's house was shot at. "When we look at what they try and portray themselves to be, defenders of their area, I can't see how that ties in with dealing drugs in a community.". "When Gary was in complete control, there would have been no suggestion of any leaks, it was a tight, tight operation. The UDA was only proscribed - or declared illegal - in 1992 and, as the Troubles ended, the group began to fracture. The attack is commemorated in the song South East Antrim Brigade by loyalist singer Rab C, many of whose compositions were about the brigade and its leading members. Sources in Carrickfergus say that while he retains the . The Reaper is coming for you" as a threat to "Mad Dog" Adair and his ally John White. e views and opinions expressed in this documentary/ies and page are soley intended to educate and provide background information to those interested in the Troubles of Northern Ireland. [14] Throughout 1999 his brigade continued to be active, undertaking a pipe bomb campaign against Catholic homes whilst on 12 May members of his brigade shot and wounded a Catholic builder in Carrickfergus under the cover name "Protestant Liberation Force". Gregg was the most senior UDA member killed since South Belfast brigadier John McMichael was blown up by the IRA in 1987. The killing of Mr Horner, gunned down in front of his three-year-old son Oscar in the Bangor carpark of Sainsbury supermarket, was linked at the time to the South East Antrim UDA feud which claimed the life of his friend, Carrickfergus loyalist Geordie Gilmore, two months earlier. Adams was in a taxi near Belfast City Hall with some associates when another car containing John 'Grug' Gregg and two fellow Rathcoole UDA members pulled up alongside and opened fire on Adams. These were carried out under the Red Hand Defenders cover name, with some attacks also blamed on the Orange Volunteers who were active in similar attacks at the time. The expelled Mount Vernon UVF commander was replaced by a close associate of the organisation's overall leader John 'Bunter' Graham. [23] As a result of the attack, three Woodvale UDA members went to Gregg and complained about the attack. He was interviewed on the basis of anonymity. [4] The attack had been known in advance by security forces due to a tip-off from informants within Rathcoole; Adams and his co-passengers had survived in part because Royal Ulster Constabulary officers, acting on the informants information, had replaced much of the ammunition in the UDAs Rathcoole weapons dump with low-velocity bullets. [46], In March 2014 the South East Antrim Brigade was widely reported as being behind a "rampage" in which up to 100 people, some of them wearing masks, attacked a number of residential properties in Larne. It's believed he fears sparking a new intra-loyalist feud, piling even more pressure on the faction which has been facing a police crackdown. A large portion of the cash was taken from a UVF-controlled taxi firm in which he holds a silent 25 per cent share. "[38] The dissident branch was also revealed to have contained an informer after Jon McDowell, Tommy Kirkham's assistant, told the Belfast Telegraph that he was an RUC Special Branch agent in November 2007. His assassination attempt had made him a loyalist hero and he quickly took over from English as brigadier. The deal was discussed at a February meeting in London at the home of the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby. "The vast majority of it comes in from down south, from one of the well-known crime gangs down there. But Johnny kept trying to justify it. What makes a serial killer and why are we fascinated by them? pockets of the town remain on edge since the murder of a local man, Glenn Quinn, by the South East Antrim UDA. However in the second half of 2002 he was dragged into the conflict after Adair made him a target in his own attempts to take full control of the UDA. This followed in summer 2002 when a community centre was taken over for this purpose although Greggs UDA objected and daubed the building with the word tout. Gregg took this as a threat and, after complaining to senior figures in the West Belfast UDA, ordered the three men to be kneecapped. Gregg, seated in the backseat, was hit at close range and died instantly. On 4 September Langhammers car was blown up outside his Whiteabbey home by Greggs men, although Langhammer himself was asleep at the time and no one was injured. The newspaper also reported that the group refused to decommission its weapons. [18], Despite the continuing activity of his brigade, and his own earlier maiming, Gregg shared the reluctance of other brigadiers about what he saw as a coming war between the UVF and West Belfast brigadier Johnny Adair. November 22 2014 04:33 PM. Close pal Clifford 'Trigger' Irons is currently out on bail awaiting trial on drugs charges. DCI John Caldwell: The New IRA threat after Omagh shooting, The Firm: Inside Lurgan and Portadowns cross-community crime gang. The Carrick UDA boss, like his counterpart in Monkstown, the other major loyalist housing area in this part of south-east Antrim, is a minor criminal and drug dealer, who has risen to the position . Old tensions resurfaced however, and after Adair's men fought with UVF supporters at the Shankill's Rex Bar, Adair launched a pogrom of the lower Shankill, forcing out all UVF members and their families and initiating a loyalist feud. [37], In 2007, the UDA's inner council expelled the Brigadier in the South East Antrim area and his political adviser after a long-running stand-off between the mainstream UDA and the South East Antrim Brigade. He has since told pals that he has no intention of leaving Rathcoole, where he grew up, but loyalist insiders say that he will have no option but to go. "The UDA is the biggest paramilitary group in Rathcoole, much bigger than the UVF, and there are some UDA men in the estate who would gladly do the job. Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Two crossed lines that form an 'X'. Home. This has trigged UDA fury - the terror group has been facing an onslaught from crimebusters in South East Antrim while the UVF in the same area have been left relatively untouched. [1] Gregg was also characterised as "a bully, a racketeer, and a sectarian bigot who took particular delight in carrying out vicious punishment attacks and randomly targeting Roman Catholics. [3] He later became part of the UDA South East Antrim Brigade. The new Irish Sea Border: What does it mean? All four were arrested earlier this week during a police and . That same night Jackie McDonalds forces invaded the lower Shankill and ran those members of C Company that had remained loyal to Adair, who was still in prison, out of the city. He told author Ian S. Wood that he had only supported the Combined Loyalist Military Command ceasefire in an effort to ensure the release of imprisoned friends. [13], Along with Jackie McDonald and Billy McFarland, fellow brigadiers on the UDA's Inner Council, Gregg was lacking in enthusiasm for the Belfast Agreement when it appeared in 1998. "The former brigadier was summoned to a UVF leadership meeting on the Shankill to talk about the missing money, but he cried off sick," said a UVF source. "Over the last 12 months the paramilitary cops (Paramilitary Crime Task Force) have been hitting the South East Antrim over and over again," said a source. [4], Gregg and his team were apprehended almost immediately by a British Army patrol that opened fire on them before ramming their car. Northern Ireland Civil Rights Association, Statistical breakdown of deaths in the Troubles of Northern Ireland 1969 2001, Irish National Liberation Army ( I.N.L.A ), Irish Republican Army. [34], Gregg was given a paramilitary funeral which was attended by thousands of mourners, including senior UDA members Jackie McDonald, Jim Gray, Sammy Duddy and Michael Stone. But South East Antrim UDA boss Gary Fisher refused to sanction an attack on the UVF man, further weakening his standing with rank-and-file members within his own terror group. [4] Gregg, at the time the head of the UDA group in Rathcoole, was in charge of a three-man hit team that pulled up alongside Adams' car near Belfast City Hall and opened fire injuring Adams and his three fellow passengers, who nonetheless escaped to seek treatment at the Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast. "I think that the powers that be know exactly which individuals are involved. Tu-Su 09:00-17:00, closed M. Located just inside the main entrance of Taipei City Hall, this is a good place to know the history and culture of Taipei City. [69] [24], Gregg was not close to Johnny Adair but sympathised with his uncompromising attitudes and his anti-UVF views. The South East Antrim UDA's tally of violence spanning two decades includes a roll call of unsolved murders. Money drives the South East Antrim UDA's criminal interests, made off the backs of communities who are ruthlessly subjected to a code of silence. Gregg was the most senior UDA member killed since South Belfast brigadier John McMichael was blown up by the IRA in 1987. [30] A bomb attack on Adair's house on 8 January 2003 was blamed on Gregg by White, although Adair himself was returned to prison two days later after a dossier detailing his drug-dealing and racketeering activities was shown to Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Paul Murphy. Masked gunmen immediately opened fire on the occupants with automatic weapons. [42] The process was confirmed as complete by the IICD and came in the last 24 hours of the commission's existence. [58], On 11 December 2018 handguns bought on the 'dark net' by two Co Antrim men linked to a loyalist feud may have been destined for use by the South East Antrim UDA. He told them they had to pay money - ranging from 5,000 right up to 20,000 - to be allowed to stay in the area and avoid a UVF punishment attack. It's very difficult to deal with the issue of their control, because of the fear that they just instil into people.". Despite his reputation for gangsterism, Greggs failed attack on Gerry Adams had afforded him legendary status and, under the direction of Jackie McDonald, the remaining UDA brigadiers concluded that Adair had to be removed. The Ulster Defence Association (UDA) is the largest Ulster loyalist paramilitary and vigilante group in Northern Ireland. A UDA member originally from the Woodvale Road had moved to Rathcoole where he had been beaten up after it emerged that he was a friend of Joe English, the former brigadier who had been exiled from the estate by Gregg for his anti-drugs stance. Under Fisher, the South East Antrim Brigade became close to the Shoukri brothers, who commanded the neighbouring North Belfast Brigade before being expelled from the UDA in June 2006. A man described in court as the commander of the UDA in South East Antrim is one of four men charged with conspiring to supply cocaine. On February 1 2003, Gregg and fellow UDA man Rab Carson had just returned to Northern Ireland after attending an Old Firm match in Glasgow when their taxi drove into . Gregg was married with one son and two stepdaughters. [36] Adair would be removed from his position of power soon afterwards in a show of strength by the mainstream UDA under the command of Jackie McDonald. [3] A mural in support of the group lists its areas of activity as being Rathcoole (the mural's location), Rathfern, Monkstown, Glengormley and Whitewell, all of which are part of Newtownabbey, as well as Carrickfergus, the Shore Road, Greenisland, Ballymena, Whitehead, Antrim and Larne. 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