By Anne Cadwallader
BELFAST — A 19-year-old Catholic man was shot dead by loyalists this week in a sectarian murder claimed by the so-called "Red Hand Defenders," a cover name used by anti-Good Friday agreement dissidents in the UDA.
Ciaran Cummings was waiting at a rotary outside Antrim town on Wednesday, July 4, for a ride to work when a motorcyclist and passenger pulled to a halt. The passenger got off and began examining the bike as if something was wrong with it.
As the victim walked past, the passenger drew a shotgun and fired, hitting him in the back of the neck. He staggered forward and fell and put his hands to his face.
The gunman then fired again into the man’s face, blowing off his fingers and killing him instantly. A few minutes later, the victim’s mother came onto the scene to find her son’s body lifeless in a pool of blood.
Twenty-four hours after the murder, the Ulster Unionist leader, David Trimble, was asked if he believed the murder was sectarian. His response was, "Quite a few of the murders of Catholics over the last number of months have been by republicans."
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"I know that yesterday’s statement came from one of these dissident loyalist groups, but there is good reason to suspect that republicans were behind the Antrim murder."
The interviewer then asked, "And what’s the evidence of that?" Trimble answered: "Well, it goes back to drugs. I mean to various forms of racketeering. A number of the murders of Catholics by republicans have been of people who haven’t been sharing the profits of their business with the republicans in the way they feel they ought to."
The RUC chief constable, Sir Ronnie Flanagan, later said the murder was sectarian and that the police had no reason to believe republican involvement. The dead man’s family was said to be stunned by Trimble’s comments.
A day later, Trimble apologized and withdrew his comments, saying he had been misinformed. The following day, however, he said: "It is a storm in a teacup and reflects, perhaps, the lack of news available to the media at the time and the way, I think, they somewhat overplayed the matter."
Trimble also said that republicans had tried to use the murder for political purposes.
"The republican movement has tried to use it as diversion to get away from the real issue: their failure to implement the agreement and the way in which guns being used is still a serious problem," he said.
"Part of the reason why guns are still being used is paramilitaries generally, and the republicans in particular, have refused to carry out their obligations.
"I am not surprised that republicans jumped in to try to use it as a diversion. My one surprise is that other people who ought to be more responsible joined in as well."