BELFAST, Northern Ireland (AP) - One of Northern Ireland's most high-profile Protestant militants was shot to death outside his home Tuesday night, more than six months after he was ousted by his outlawed group. Two gunmen fired several shots at Jim Gray after he answered his door in Protestant east Belfast, his longtime power base, police said. Detectives covered his body with a white sheet as they searched outside his home for evidence.
No group claimed responsibility for his assassination, but a previous assassination attempt in 2002 came during a feud among Protestant militants involved in Belfast's thriving drug trade.
Gray, 43, had been free on bail while awaiting trial on charges of money laundering, concealing stolen property and other offenses. Gray had been one of the six regional commanders of the outlawed Ulster Defense Association, Northern Ireland's largest outlawed group, until March 30, when colleagues ousted him. |