Armoury found with dead ex-terrorist
ENOUGH UVF guns to start a war are found at a house where an ex-paramilitary shot himself.
Police found a stash of more than 70 pistols and rifles as well as thousands of bullets when officers went to probe the death of Billy "Black Neck" Bell.
The huge cache of arms was seized at the weekend, but news of the find only emerged today.
It is understood police are not treating Bell's death as suspicious.
The massive cache of weapons are believed to have been hidden all over Bell's terraced house at Ballysillan Drive in north Belfast.
Bell, aged in his 50s, was a weapons expert who could turn replica guns into firing weapons.
A blue-and-white floral tribute saying "Dad" and "Granddad" is in the garden of the house, but reporters were threatened away.
More guns were also found in other searches of lock-up premises in the greater Belfast area.
All of the weapons have been taken for forensic examination, police said.
It is one of the biggest armouries ever found in Belfast and ballistic tests will be carried out on every weapon to determine if they have been used.
It is understood the arms, including a hand gun and rifles, were linked to the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF).
A police spokesman said: "A substantial amount of guns and ammunition were discovered as part of an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the sudden death of a man in the north of the city at the weekend.
"During a follow-up search of the man's house, more than 70 suspected guns and thousands of rounds of ammunition were discovered. All have been removed for forensic examination.
"A further small number of suspected firearms were also found in lock-up premises in the greater Belfast area."
In May last year, the UVF effectively declared an end to its campaign of violence by announcing the organisation was adopting a non-military and civilian role and had put all guns "beyond reach".
Local SDLP Assembly member Alban Maginness said: "This is a welcome find. Taking such a large amount of weaponry off our streets is a massive step in the right direction.
"The UVF and all paramilitary groups must only be judged against how they measure up to the task of ending all of their activities.
"This means that there must be complete and verifiable disposal of all weapons, the ending of all criminality and the dismantling of the command structures and organisation. These are the standards on which the SDLP and the wider community will judge the UVF
"There are still malign figures and groups in our society trapped in the past but holding back their communities' future.
"We cannot ignore this fact now that we have reached a period of political stability.
"We should help those communities by finally loosening the grip that paramilitary godfathers have over them.
"Today's find should remind us all that we must not become complacent, we must redouble our efforts to bring this scourge to an end."
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Belfast
Saturday 11 February 2012
Today
Light rain
Temperature: 4 C to 8 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: South
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 4 C to 7 C
Wind Speed: 6 mph
Wind direction: South west
