Matthew Burns (c. 1976 – 21 February 2002) was a drug dealer shot dead by the

Real IRA The Real Irish Republican Army, or Real IRA (RIRA), is a dissident Irish republican paramilitary group that aims to bring about a United Ireland. It formed in 1997 following a split in the Provisional IRA by dissident members, who rejected the ...

Background

A native of

Castlewellan Castlewellan () is a small town in County Down, in the south-east of Northern Ireland close to the Irish Sea. It is beside Castlewellan Lake and Slievenaslat mountain, southwest of Downpatrick. It lies between the Mourne Mountains and Slieve C ...

County Down County Down () is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. It covers an area of and has a population of 531,665. It borders County Antrim to the ...

, Burns was a fitness disciple, and kick-boxed with Northern Ireland's

tae kwon do ''Taekwondo'', ''Tae Kwon Do'' or ''Taekwon-Do'' (; ko, 태권도/跆拳道 ) is a Korean martial arts, Korean form of martial arts involving punching and kicking techniques, with emphasis on head-height kicks, spinning jump kicks, and fast k ...

academy. He was a participant in a campaign to have tae kwon do listed as an Olympic sport, and hoped to compete in the Olympics himself. He was also described as a drug dealer, and had been linked to a plot to import heroin into Northern Ireland, along with an accomplice, Frankie Mulholland, shot dead by loyalists in 2002.

Dispute with the Real IRA

Between late 1999 and early 2000, he became involved with a dispute against local members of the

Real Irish Republican Army The Real Irish Republican Army, or Real IRA (RIRA), is a dissident Irish republican paramilitary group that aims to bring about a United Ireland. It formed in 1997 following a split in the Provisional IRA by dissident members, who rejected the ...

(RIRA), including its commander. This is believed to have led to an incident where the Real IRA commander led a group of seven men to administer a punishment beating on Burns in John F. Kennedy Park. According to an article in the ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper and online publication which is owned by Independent News & Media (INM), a subsidiary of Mediahuis. The newspaper version often includes glossy magazines. Traditionally a broadsheet new ...

'': Burns was afterwards the subject of a

booby-trap A booby trap is a device or setup that is intended to kill, harm or surprise a human or another animal. It is triggered by the presence or actions of the victim and sometimes has some form of bait designed to lure the victim towards it. The trap m ...

bomb placed on his car at the house of the mother of his girlfriend. While Burns was uninjured, his pregnant girlfriend received a leg injury. She later gave birth to the couple's only child.

Second IRA attack

Burns and his brother Patrick were leaving their mother's home in Rathfriland on 21 February 2002 in

. when "a gunman opened fire with a high-powered assault shotgun, an Italian-manufactured weapon that fires steel ball bearings with destructive power. The first blast disabled the car engine. The second, fired at point-blank range, tore through Matthew's chest and neck. Two of the steel pellets hit Patrick in the hand and arm." The

Police Service of Northern Ireland The Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI; ga, Seirbhís Póilíneachta Thuaisceart Éireann; Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ') is the police, police force that serves Northern Ireland. It is the successor to the Royal Ulster Constabu ...

reportedly believe Burns was shot by a member of the

"nearby Kilcoo, brought in by the local Provisional IRA boss to carry out the assassination." Several other people are believed to have been involved.

Aftermath

Patrick Burns died on 9 December 2003. Another brother, Sean, received a death threat from the IRA, forcing him into exile. After his death, "stories that he was a drug dealer with links to loyalists" were reportedly disseminated. were claimed to be deliberate vilification by republicans seeking to justify the murder, and refuted by the PSNI at an inquest in November 2004. Burns' grave was regularly desecrated and his remains were re-interred elsewhere.

Andrew Burns

Matthew Burns was unrelated to Andrew Burns, killed by the IRA in

County Donegal County Donegal ( ; ga, Contae Dhún na nGall) is a county of Ireland in the province of Ulster and in the Northern and Western Region. It is named after the town of Donegal in the south of the county. It has also been known as County Tyrconne ...

in 2008.

References

External links

Rte.ie

* ttp://www.independent.ie/opinion/analysis/ceasefire-meant-nothing-to-gangs-2907422.html Ceasefire Meant Nothing to Gangs @ Independent
Cain.ulst.ac.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Burns, Matthew 2002 murders in the United Kingdom 2002 in Northern Ireland Murder in Northern Ireland Deaths by firearm in Northern Ireland 2000s murders in Northern Ireland 2002 murders in Ireland