Ian Ogle murder: Victim’s family blame UVF for brutal killing

A vigil is to be held in east Belfast this evening to show community support for Mr Ogle’s devastated family.

The 45-year-old father of two was brutally assaulted by a gang of people, some believed to have been armed with knives, at the entrance to Cluan Place at around 9pm on Sunday.

The well-known loyalist, who had acted as a spokesperson for his community in the past, was rushed to the Royal Victoria Hospital where he later died.

The UVF in east Belfast has distanced itself from those who carried out the killing through a statement issued to the Irish News.

The family say the statement is an “insult” and that they have been terrorised by people claiming to be from the UVF.

Ian Ogle’s daughter, Toni Johnston, told UTV Live: “I had to move home. I was so frightened to walk my dogs because I had seen this same group of thugs, criminals. This is east Belfast.

“We seen them. We seen them, masked. We seen them run. We seen the car they got into and then I was told that they got my Daddy. We didn’t know how bad it was. We came up to the street. I seen him lying there.”

Details of this evening’s vigil were published on a Facebook page – Remembering ‘Big O’ Ian Ogle.

The post said: “As a community who has been ripped apart we have decided to hold a vigil to remember our dear friend, a husband, a father, a son, a uncle and a gentleman. Ian Ogle GBNF.”

It said the vigil will take place at the entrance to Cluan Place at 7.30pm.

“This is a gathering/vigil of support for the entire Ogle family, to show our support as a community and send a clear message to these gangsters shaming East Belfast enough is enough,” the post added.

It concluded by urging attendees to “bring candles or balloons”.

Local UUP alderman Sonia Copeland said Mr Ogle’s family has been left “broken” by his murder.

Confirming that she will attend the vigil, she encouraged others to do likewise.

In a further show of community support, a Go Fund Me page has been set up to help the family meet the cost of Mr Ogle’s funeral.

The page states: “Ian ‘Big O’ Ogle was taken from us tragically. While there are so many hard decisions and plans that need to be made in light of this tragedy, we want to lessen the financial burden by raising funds to pay for the funeral. Big O was loved by so many people in the community and any donations would be greatly appreciated. On behalf of the entire Ogle family circle, thank you.”

The page had a fundraising target of £4,000, but within a matter of hours had already far exceeded that total.

At the time of writing there had been more than 270 donations totalling in excess of £7,100.

Meanwhile, police say they have made “significant progress” in their investigation into the murder. In a statement, Detective Chief Inspector Peter McKenna said he was “particularly keen” to hear from anyone who had seen a group of people running from Cluan Place to the Templemore Avenue area.

Four arrests have been made in the investigation — two women aged 35 and 36, and two men aged 31 and 45 — but all four have now been released on bail.