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Frankie Curry
Frankie Curry (c. 1955 – 17 March 1999) was a Northern Irish loyalist who was involved with a number of paramilitary groups during his long career. A critic of the Northern Ireland peace process, Curry was killed during a loyalist feud.
A native of Belfast's Shankill Road and a nephew of Gusty Spence, Curry became involved in the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) at an early age, claiming that he had helped conceal guns in the aftermath of the June 1966 murder of Catholic civilian Peter Ward by Spence, Robert Williamson and Hugh McClean in the Malvern Arms bar on the Shankill.
Curry's reputation within the UVF soon grew and in 1972 at the age of 17, he was a central figure in the plot to break his uncle Gusty Spence out of the Maze Prison. Curry was driving Spence back to prison after a period of leave when their car was stopped by a UVF patrol and Spence was "abducted". In fact both Curry and Spence were closely involved in planning and executing the supposed kidnapping. Curry knew in advance the Springmartin Road location on which the event was to take place and had been told specially by the UVF leadership to drive Spence that day.
Curry operated as part of the UVF's Red Hand Commando (RHC) and was said to have been responsible for at least twelve of the killings claimed by the RHC. Curry himself would claim to have been involved in at least 16 deaths, claiming 19 in another interview, and had even described himself as a serial killer. He stated that he had killed Bernard Rice, Patrick McCrory and Sean McConville in 1972 before killing Michael Coleman, Joseph McAleese, John McCormac and Thomas Holmes Curry the following year. All seven men were Catholic civilians.
During his time as a paramilitary Curry served a number of spells in prison. In 1973 he was given four years for intimidation and handling stolen goods and the following year was given twelve years for attempting to murder four youths on the Antrim Road. During his trial Curry identified himself as a member of the Red Hand Commando and refused to recognise the court. Sometime before 1982 Curry switched to membership of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA) and in 1982 he was returned to prison after being found transporting 101 bullets in his car for that organisation. He was jailed again in 1985 for possessing a gun and 900 rounds of ammunition. In 1986 he went on hunger strike over conditions, shedding two stone in weight and being hospitalised before ending his protest. During this spell he had an extra year added to his sentence after taking part in a prison protest that caused £1 million of damage to Crumlin Road gaol. Soon after this Curry fell out with the UDA and left the group, returning to the RHC. He would return to prison in 1995 for a nine-month sentence on charges of impersonating a police officer as part of a failed plan to hijack a lorry.
Henry McDonald and Jim Cusack have claimed that Curry suffered from severe mood swings as well as an addiction to morphine-based painkillers. Cusack and McDonald further claim that one of Curry's final acts on behalf of the RHC was the killing of Billy Elliot, whose death was ordered by RHC supreme command after his involvement in the brutal killing of Margaret Wright at a loyalist shebeen. Curry confirmed himself as Elliot's killer in an interview shortly before his death.
On 28 August 1996, the UDA's South Belfast Brigadier Alex Kerr, and head of the UVF Mid-Ulster Brigade Billy Wright, were expelled from the Combined Loyalist Military Command and ordered to leave Northern Ireland after the pair had lent their support to a campaign against the Belfast Agreement in general and the Progressive Unionist Party and Ulster Democratic Party in particular. The campaign was being led by former UDA hitman and Ulster Independence Movement member Pastor Kenny McClinton.
However Curry admired Wright and his Mid-Ulster UVF dissidents and had forged close links with the group, which would soon re-emerge as the Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF), in the run-up to the Drumcree conflict of 1996. A photograph showing Curry embracing Wright at a 1996 Portadown rally in support of "King Rat" was published at this time. Curry's involvement with Wright saw him expelled from the RHC and ordered to stand down by the Shankill UVF. Curry however, who also had some skill as a bomb-maker, ignored the orders and offered his services to any loyalist paramilitary group that felt it could use him.
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Frankie Curry
Frankie Curry (c. 1955 – 17 March 1999) was a Northern Irish loyalist who was involved with a number of paramilitary groups during his long career. A critic of the Northern Ireland peace process, Curry was killed during a loyalist feud.
A native of Belfast's Shankill Road and a nephew of Gusty Spence, Curry became involved in the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) at an early age, claiming that he had helped conceal guns in the aftermath of the June 1966 murder of Catholic civilian Peter Ward by Spence, Robert Williamson and Hugh McClean in the Malvern Arms bar on the Shankill.
Curry's reputation within the UVF soon grew and in 1972 at the age of 17, he was a central figure in the plot to break his uncle Gusty Spence out of the Maze Prison. Curry was driving Spence back to prison after a period of leave when their car was stopped by a UVF patrol and Spence was "abducted". In fact both Curry and Spence were closely involved in planning and executing the supposed kidnapping. Curry knew in advance the Springmartin Road location on which the event was to take place and had been told specially by the UVF leadership to drive Spence that day.
Curry operated as part of the UVF's Red Hand Commando (RHC) and was said to have been responsible for at least twelve of the killings claimed by the RHC. Curry himself would claim to have been involved in at least 16 deaths, claiming 19 in another interview, and had even described himself as a serial killer. He stated that he had killed Bernard Rice, Patrick McCrory and Sean McConville in 1972 before killing Michael Coleman, Joseph McAleese, John McCormac and Thomas Holmes Curry the following year. All seven men were Catholic civilians.
During his time as a paramilitary Curry served a number of spells in prison. In 1973 he was given four years for intimidation and handling stolen goods and the following year was given twelve years for attempting to murder four youths on the Antrim Road. During his trial Curry identified himself as a member of the Red Hand Commando and refused to recognise the court. Sometime before 1982 Curry switched to membership of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA) and in 1982 he was returned to prison after being found transporting 101 bullets in his car for that organisation. He was jailed again in 1985 for possessing a gun and 900 rounds of ammunition. In 1986 he went on hunger strike over conditions, shedding two stone in weight and being hospitalised before ending his protest. During this spell he had an extra year added to his sentence after taking part in a prison protest that caused £1 million of damage to Crumlin Road gaol. Soon after this Curry fell out with the UDA and left the group, returning to the RHC. He would return to prison in 1995 for a nine-month sentence on charges of impersonating a police officer as part of a failed plan to hijack a lorry.
Henry McDonald and Jim Cusack have claimed that Curry suffered from severe mood swings as well as an addiction to morphine-based painkillers. Cusack and McDonald further claim that one of Curry's final acts on behalf of the RHC was the killing of Billy Elliot, whose death was ordered by RHC supreme command after his involvement in the brutal killing of Margaret Wright at a loyalist shebeen. Curry confirmed himself as Elliot's killer in an interview shortly before his death.
On 28 August 1996, the UDA's South Belfast Brigadier Alex Kerr, and head of the UVF Mid-Ulster Brigade Billy Wright, were expelled from the Combined Loyalist Military Command and ordered to leave Northern Ireland after the pair had lent their support to a campaign against the Belfast Agreement in general and the Progressive Unionist Party and Ulster Democratic Party in particular. The campaign was being led by former UDA hitman and Ulster Independence Movement member Pastor Kenny McClinton.
However Curry admired Wright and his Mid-Ulster UVF dissidents and had forged close links with the group, which would soon re-emerge as the Loyalist Volunteer Force (LVF), in the run-up to the Drumcree conflict of 1996. A photograph showing Curry embracing Wright at a 1996 Portadown rally in support of "King Rat" was published at this time. Curry's involvement with Wright saw him expelled from the RHC and ordered to stand down by the Shankill UVF. Curry however, who also had some skill as a bomb-maker, ignored the orders and offered his services to any loyalist paramilitary group that felt it could use him.