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- Alternate meaning: Billy Wright (footballer)
Billy Wright (July 7, 1960 – December 27, 1997) was a Northern Irish paramilitary *, a member of the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) and leader of the extremist Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF). He was killed by the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA) group in 1997.
Joins the UVF
He was born in Wolverhampton to an Irish Protestant family, but was raised in Mount Norris, South Armagh. He joined the youth section of the UVF at the age of fifteen, partly in response to the Kingsmill massacre of 1976, when ten local Protestants were killed by the IRA. Locals say he was also "indoctrinated" by local loyalist paramilitaries *. He was soon arrested and sentenced to six years in prison for arms offenses and hijacking in 1977. He served 42 months at the Crumlin Road and Maze prisons. When his prison term was completed, Wright went briefly to Scotland but soon returned to Portadown in Northern Ireland. He worked as an insurance salesman, married and had two daughters. However he also resumed his UVF activities. He was arrested repeatedly throughout the 1980s on suspicion of murder and conspiracy. He was also targeted by the IRA and also the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA) leader Dominic McGlinchey. Wright's uncle, father-in-law and brother-in-law were all shot dead. He was nicknamed 'King Rat' by the press.
Mid Ulster UVF commander and founder of LVF
Wright became commander of a brigade in the mid-Ulster area around Portadown and directed up to 20 sectarian killings, according to the Security Forces, though he was never convicted of any It is also claimed that he was one of the most significant drug dealers in the area, primarily in ecstasy . He broke away from the UVF after they failed to organise attacks in support of the Orange Order march at Drumcree in July 1996. A Catholic taxi driver, Michael McGoldrick, was shot dead near Lurgan on July 8, 1996 as part of an attack by Wright's unit not approved by the UVF leadership Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF), taking members mainly from his old UVF brigade. They were joined by other loyalists disaffected by the peace process, giving them a maximum strength estimated at around 250 activists. They operated outside the Combined Loyalist Military Command and ignored the ceasefire order of October 1994. The LVF was proscribed (made illegal) by Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Mo Mowlam in June 1997 [http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/war/troubles/factfiles/lvf.shtml" target="_blank" >*.
Despite a series of sectarian murders and attacks on Catholic property attributed to the LVF through 1996-1997 (although they were not claimed), Wright was not successfully imprisoned until March 1997 when he was convicted of threatening to kill a woman and sentenced to eight years. Initially imprisoned at HMP Maghaberry he was sent to the Maze again in April 1997. He demanded and was granted a LVF section in C and D wings of H-block 6 (H6) for himself and 26 fellow terrorists. INLA prisoners were in the A and B wings and the Irish Republican Socialist Party (IRSP) warned there would be trouble. In May the LVF agreed to a ceasefire. In August 1997 LVF prisoners rioted over their visiting accommodation.
Killing of Wright
INLA inmates had told staff "they intend, given a chance, to take out the LVF". The POA said precautions had been put in place to ensure inmates from the two terror groups did not come into contact with each other. Prison officers had grave concerns over security measures in H Block 6, where Wright and the LVF were housed. Five months later, LVF leader Wright was ambushed by an INLA team, shooting him at least three times led by Christopher 'Crip' McWilliams, inside the top security jail.
The LVF was reduced without its leader and became more closely tied to the Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF) of Johnny 'Mad Dog' Adair. The group committed a series of almost random attacks on Catholic civilians in revenge for the death of Wright. Martin O'Hagan, a journalist Wright especially disliked, was killed in September 2001 by the Red Hand Defenders, a cover-name.
External links
- An account of the murder of Wright from An Camchéachta, IRSP newspaper
- An account of the murder from a non nationalist viewpoint
Further reading
- Chris Anderson, The Billy Boy: The life and death of LVF leader Billy Wright, Mainstream Publishing, 2002. ISBN 1840186399
1960 births | 1997 deaths | Loyalist Volunteer Force | Murdered prisoners | Murdered terrorists | Natives of County Armagh
"Billy Wright (terrorist)"