Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Three are jailed for fire extinguisher attack on bouncer
Five facing murder trial over Horner Judge slams ‘cowardly’ assault
FOUR men and a woman were yesterday orderered to stand trial over the UDA feud murder of Colin Horner.
The 35-year-old was shot dead in front of his threeyear-old son in a supermarket carpark in Bangor, Co Down, on Sunday, May 28, last year.
At Belfast Crown Court the four men pleaded not guilty to the murder and denied possessing a firearm and ammunition with intent to endanger life.
They are Joseph Blair, 35, of Shackelton Walk, Robert Ralph, 47, of Donaghadee Road, Alan James Wilson, 30, of North Green, all from Newtownards and Ryan Graham Smyth, 31, of Windsor Gardens in Bangor.
Terrie Aicken, 24, of Green Road, Conlig, Newtownards, pleaded not guitly to perverting the course of justice. THREE men involved in a “cowardly and vicious” attack on a pub doorman who was battered with a fire extinguisher were jailed yesteray.
The trio – brothers Ian and Brian Sinclair and Glen Mccullough – were all handed prison sentences for an incident on March 11 in Carrickfergus, Co Antrim.
The doorman of the Royal Oak pub suffered multiple injuries including fractures to his skull, jaw, eye and cheekbone.
The victim and a second bouncer were assaulted after they refused to let Ian Sinclair into the bar.
Sinclair later claimed this was “on account of the ongoing loyalist feud involving the Gilmore family and the South East Antrim UDA”.
During yesterday’s sentencing, Judge Gordon Kerr QC said the attack on the doorman went “well beyond a reaction to being refused a drink”, adding it was a vicious assault on a man working in a public place. He also spoke of the impact of the violent incident and said “it is clear his time working as a doorman is now over”.
While Brian Sinclair, 52, and brother Ian, 38, caused the doorman grievous bodily harm with intent, 54-year-old Mccullough was acquitted of this charge and admitted a lesser charge of causing him actual bodily harm.
In addition, Brian Sinclair admitted a charge of common assault against the second doorman.
Judge Kerr said while Ian both lifted the fire extinguisher and brought it down on the prone doorman, he accepted Brian did not use it during the attack.
Ian was handed a nine-year sentence, Brian was given six years and Mccullough received three.
All men were told they will serve half their sentences behind bars, with the remainder on licence.