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Belfast Telegraph
4 days ago
- Belfast Telegraph
Former H block boss suspects collusion in jail slaying of loyalist killer Billy Wright
McKee was at his desk as governor of the Maze Prison on December 27, 1997, the day the INLA claimed their biggest scalp of the Troubles. It was the final weeks and months of negotiations that would lead to the signing of the Good Friday Agreement and Wright was seen as one of the remaining obstacles to a settlement. Vehemently opposed to the peace process, he stayed at the head of his LVF sectarian killing machine despite being behind bars, orchestrating and ordering attacks with the help of his trusted second in command, Mark 'Swinger' Fulton. So when Christopher 'Crip' McWilliams, John Kenneway and John 'Sonny' Glennon intercepted Wright as he made his way from his cell in the Maze to a visit from his girlfriend, they removed one of the biggest obstacles to peace. Armed with a pistol smuggled into what was supposed to be the most secure prison in Europe, the trio climbed over the prison roof and shot him inside the prison transport van. In October 1998 they were convicted of murder and possession of a firearm and ammunition with intent to endanger life. They were sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder and 20 years on the firearms offence. Within two years they were free men, under the terms of the peace accord. It was a day that was to leave a permanent scar on the mind and soul of McKee. As the man in charge, he found himself thrust into the spotlight. He was to discover he may have been an unwitting pawn in a bigger game, played out by MI5 in collusion with the INLA. Collusion Inside The Maze is the title of McKee's newly published book, a novel that teases out the conspiracy theories that still surround the death of one of the most notorious and dangerous killers in the history of the conflict. 'It's a 'what if' book,' McKee told the Sunday World. 'I have to be careful, I'm still covered by the Official Secrets Act — as far as the facts are concerned, I can only stick to what is in the public domain, but what happened has never sat well with me. There are too many coincidences and unanswered questions.' He said his decision to address those questions in the form of a novel is an attempt to highlight certain issues, including the role of the security services and why he as governor was never informed of intelligence that pointed to a planned attack on Wright. 'What is fact is that during a bugged INLA meeting on the Antrim Road, a plan to assassinate 'King Rat' Wright was discussed. That meeting was 12 days before Wright was killed. 'When Wright was transferred from Maghaberry, so were Glennon and McWilliams. I was never told that there was clear intelligence Wright was going to be killed. Did they just let it happen? 'It has festered with me for a long time. Wright was a very bad man — he had been linked to 20 sectarian murders — but even given that, he should have been moved out of the Maze.' Republicans were threatening to take retaliatory action against Wright's LVF, which would have put the entire peace process at the risk of collapse. McKee said he was in his office when he got the call that there had been a shooting in H Block 6. 'You just know what to do, it's not a question of 'oh my God what next?' Your training takes over — you know what to do. 'People always asked me to tell the true story, but I don't know what the true story is, so I decided to write a thriller that was loosely based on the murder, giving possibilities that may account for state collusion,' he said. Much of what is in the book is drawn from his imagination but unmistakably grounded in real events. 'I used Billy Wright's name but, under the Official Secrets Act, I couldn't use anything that was not in the public domain. 'The killing of Wright is a significant part of the book, but there are other incidents as well, including ones connected to the IRA's Nutting Squad, Stakeknife and the Disappeared.' He said he has shared the book with a number of former combatants who have given it their seal of approval on what was a decisive moment in our history. 'One combatant told me, 'Mate, that's not a novel, that's a true story'. I hope it goes some way to shedding some light on what may or may not have happened.' Billy McKee joined the Prison Service as a 22-year-old never intending it to be his career, but he quickly rose through the ranks, eventually finding himself governor at Maghaberry and the Maze. At the height of the Troubles the job was fraught with risk. He had to move house three times at short notice because of death threats. 'I'd get a call in the middle of the night from the security services telling me, 'Get out of the house now, they're on their way to kill you'. The police couldn't come in case it compromised an informant or agent. The government would move us to another house until it happened again.' The pressure was too much for his marriage, which collapsed. His mental health suffered. He recalls leaving Maghaberry in the back of an ambulance believing he had suffered a heart attack. It wasn't but it was a panic attack brought on by the pressures of dealing with a failing marriage, death threats and being head of one of the most notorious prisons in Europe. After a near 30-year career in the Prison Service, he retired on medical grounds but to this day struggles with PTSD. 'I've had 66 counselling sessions learning to live with what I call my 'black cloud' — some days it's there some days it's not. When I was in the Prison Service I was known as Billy, since I left I introduce myself as William, I'm trying to leave that person behind. 'Revisiting the Wright murder has been cathartic because as I've said the circumstances have festered with me for years.' These days William spends much of his time talking to youth groups and often to former combatants. 'It helps me, but I also think it helps young people and even those who went through it all in this country to listen to someone who stared it in the face.'
Sunday World
6 days ago
- Politics
- Sunday World
Former H block boss suspects collusion in jail slaying of loyalist thug
'There are still too many coincidences and unanswered questions hanging over Billy Wright's killing in the Maze' PACEMAKER BFST 11-06-02: Mark Fulton pictured (left)in 1996 who was found dead today in his prison cell. He is pictured with his close friend and associate of Former LVF leader Billy Wright. Christopher McWilliams (foreground), one of the killers of Loyalist leader Billy Wright, walks free from Magilligan Prison in Co Londonderry Friday October 20, 2000. McWilliams, who shot the notorious Loyalist Volunteer Force leader on December 27, 1997, today denied any British Government collusion in the murder. See PA story ULSTER Wright. PA Photo/Belfast Telegraph: Ian Trevithick. William McKee says he was thrown to the wolves as British security services allowed the murder of loyalist killer Billy Wright on his watch. McKee was at his desk as governor of the Maze Prison on December 27, 1997, the day the INLA claimed their biggest scalp of the Troubles. It was the final weeks and months of negotiations that would lead to the signing of the Good Friday Agreement and Wright was seen as one of the remaining obstacles to a settlement. Vehemently opposed to the peace process, he stayed at the head of his LVF sectarian killing machine despite being behind bars, orchestrating and ordering attacks with the help of his trusted second in command, Mark 'Swinger' Fulton. William McKee News in 90 Seconds - 7th June So when Christopher 'Crip' McWilliams, John Kenneway and John 'Sonny' Glennon intercepted Wright as he made his way from his cell in the Maze to a visit from his girlfriend, they removed one of the biggest obstacles to peace. Armed with a pistol smuggled into what was supposed to be the most secure prison in Europe, the trio climbed over the prison roof and shot him inside the prison transport van. In October 1998 they were convicted of murder and possession of a firearm and ammunition with intent to endanger life. They were sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder and 20 years on the firearms offence. Within two years they were free men, under the terms of the peace accord. It was a day that was to leave a permanent scar on the mind and soul of McKee. As the man in charge, he found himself thrust into the spotlight. He was to discover he may have been an unwitting pawn in a bigger game, played out by MI5 in collusion with the INLA. Collusion Inside The Maze is the title of McKee's newly published book, a novel that teases out the conspiracy theories that still surround the death of one of the most notorious and dangerous killers in the history of the conflict. 'It's a 'what if' book,' McKee told the Sunday World. 'I have to be careful, I'm still covered by the Official Secrets Act — as far as the facts are concerned, I can only stick to what is in the public domain, but what happened has never sat well with me. There are too many coincidences and unanswered questions.' Billy Wright He said his decision to address those questions in the form of a novel is an attempt to highlight certain issues, including the role of the security services and why he as governor was never informed of intelligence that pointed to a planned attack on Wright. 'What is fact is that during a bugged INLA meeting on the Antrim Road, a plan to assassinate 'King Rat' Wright was discussed. That meeting was 12 days before Wright was killed. 'When Wright was transferred from Maghaberry, so were Glennon and McWilliams. I was never told that there was clear intelligence Wright was going to be killed. Did they just let it happen? 'It has festered with me for a long time. Wright was a very bad man — he had been linked to 20 sectarian murders — but even given that, he should have been moved out of the Maze.' Republicans were threatening to take retaliatory action against Wright's LVF, which would have put the entire peace process at the risk of collapse. McKee said he was in his office when he got the call that there had been a shooting in H Block 6. 'You just know what to do, it's not a question of 'oh my God what next?' Your training takes over — you know what to do. 'People always asked me to tell the true story, but I don't know what the true story is, so I decided to write a thriller that was loosely based on the murder, giving possibilities that may account for state collusion,' he said. The coffin of Billy Wright. Photo: CRISPIN RODWELL Much of what is in the book is drawn from his imagination but unmistakably grounded in real events. 'I used Billy Wright's name but, under the Official Secrets Act, I couldn't use anything that was not in the public domain. 'The killing of Wright is a significant part of the book, but there are other incidents as well, including ones connected to the IRA's Nutting Squad, Stakeknife and the Disappeared.' He said he has shared the book with a number of former combatants who have given it their seal of approval on what was a decisive moment in our history. 'One combatant told me, 'Mate, that's not a novel, that's a true story'. I hope it goes some way to shedding some light on what may or may not have happened.' Billy McKee joined the Prison Service as a 22-year-old never intending it to be his career, but he quickly rose through the ranks, eventually finding himself governor at Maghaberry and the Maze. At the height of the Troubles the job was fraught with risk. He had to move house three times at short notice because of death threats. 'I'd get a call in the middle of the night from the security services telling me, 'Get out of the house now, they're on their way to kill you'. The police couldn't come in case it compromised an informant or agent. The government would move us to another house until it happened again.' The pressure was too much for his marriage, which collapsed. His mental health suffered. He recalls leaving Maghaberry in the back of an ambulance believing he had suffered a heart attack. It wasn't but it was a panic attack brought on by the pressures of dealing with a failing marriage, death threats and being head of one of the most notorious prisons in Europe. After a near 30-year career in the Prison Service, he retired on medical grounds but to this day struggles with PTSD. 'I've had 66 counselling sessions learning to live with what I call my 'black cloud' — some days it's there some days it's not. When I was in the Prison Service I was known as Billy, since I left I introduce myself as William, I'm trying to leave that person behind. 'Revisiting the Wright murder has been cathartic because as I've said the circumstances have festered with me for years.' These days William spends much of his time talking to youth groups and often to former combatants. 'It helps me, but I also think it helps young people and even those who went through it all in this country to listen to someone who stared it in the face.'
Telegraph
17-04-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Blair administration failed to extradite Irish terrorist wanted over MP's murder
The Blair government moved too slowly to extradite a fugitive Republican terrorist wanted in connection with the murder of an MP, newly declassified documents reveal. Officials admitted 'the bird has flown' after failing to act quickly enough to extradite Harry 'Basher' Flynn, the convicted terrorist gunrunner. Flynn was named in court in the 1980s as chief of staff for the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA), and is believed to have been a member since its creation in 1975 as a rival to the IRA. He has been wanted in relation to the assassination of Airey Neave, one of Margaret Thatcher's closest confidantes. Neave was Margaret Thatcher's shadow secretary for Northern Ireland and during the Second World War had been the first British prisoner of war escapee from Colditz Castle. The 63-year-old was killed on March 30 1979, when a bomb planted under his Vauxhall Cavalier exploded as it left the House of Commons underground car park. In 1975, Flynn was charged with stealing £3,500 in an armed bank robbery in Belfast but he tunnelled out of jail before his trial and continued to be listed as 'unlawfully at large' by Northern Ireland's prison service into the 21st-century. After escaping from Maze Prison, he was caught five years later while rioting about hunger strikes outside the British Embassy in Dublin. However, an extradition attempt failed. In 1986, Flynn was jailed for five years in France for illegally importing £70,000 of weapons including 100 light anti-tank weapons, 40 Kalashnikov rifles, three machine-guns and two mortars. Britain tried to extradite him again in 1987, but failed as his crime was deemed 'political'. Flynn, 71, now runs the Celts Well pub in Santa Ponsa, Majorca, where the INLA's emblem and memorabilia glorifying republican terrorists are on display. Foreign Office papers released at the National Archives show that officials missed a third chance to drag him back to face justice from the Balearic island in the late 1990s. Flynn was arrested in mid-July 1997, prompting an urgent missive to the Foreign Office from Madrid-based diplomat John Dew, who received the news from the consulate in Palma. On July 15, he wrote: 'Flynn came to the consulate's attention recently when he was arrested after hitting a musician on the hand (drink having been taken). 'He is still in custody awaiting trial. The local police regard him as somewhat unstable. He allegedly hangs around an Irish haunt in Majorca called the Celts Bar in Calvia.' Crown solicitors and the DPP in Northern Ireland were consulted, and officials found no theoretical barrier to extradition or statute of limitations on the robbery or escape offences, but the process did not move quickly enough. David Brighty, Britain's ambassador in Madrid, wrote to the Foreign Office again on Aug 13, in a somewhat exasperated tone, to say that Flynn had been released after paying a large surety. He said Flynn had been released ten days previously, after paying a Palma court some two million pesetas, about £10,000 after the money was brought to the island by a bagman from Dublin. 'The bird has flown' Brighty said the consul in Palma had 'not felt able to make too many direct inquiries, since Flynn was using an Irish passport and was seen by the Spanish as being an Irish National'. He added: 'It looks as if the bird has flown. If there were thought that we wished to take advantage of his detention, then we seem to have reacted pretty slowly to John Dew's teleletter of 15 July, which clearly signalled the opportunity.' A memo circulated in London said that officials would have to ask the secretary of state if they wished to 'seek extradition given that we have already lost on two occasions and that a further court hearing may be an occasion for us to be accused of terrible things with little chance of rebuttal.' 'Assuming that we agree we should seek the return of Flynn,' an official wrote. 'I attach a draft submission to the secretary of state.' A handwritten note then added: 'Not issued. Harry Flynn left the jurisdiction on 3 August. NFA for the moment.' The identity of the musician and the outcome of the trial are not contained in the papers. Flynn still runs the Celts Well bar and in 2019 declined to comment when approached by the Telegraph at his pub in Majorca. The same year Flynn was named in a book by Patrick Bishop, a historian, as a founding member of the INLA who would probably 'never be brought to justice' for acts committed during the Troubles. Flynn is believed to have lived in Santa Ponsa since the 90s in an apartment near the Celts Well. At the height of fighting between the IRA and INLA he became a target of the former as a 'godfather' of the latter. He survived an assassination attempt in Dublin in 1983 and another later shooting. The INLA, which Flynn was thought to have joined in 1975, declared a ceasefire after the Good Friday Agreement.
