Samuel McCrory (22 March 1965 – 24 July 2022), also known as Skelly McCrory, was a member of the

Ulster Defence Association The Ulster Defence Association (UDA) is an Ulster loyalist paramilitary group in Northern Ireland. It was formed in September 1971 as an umbrella group for various loyalist groups and undertook an armed campaign of almost 24 years as one of t ...

(UDA), an

Ulster loyalist Ulster loyalism is a strand of Ulster unionism associated with working class Ulster Protestants in Northern Ireland. Like other unionists, loyalists support the continued existence of Northern Ireland within the United Kingdom, and oppose a u ...

paramilitary A paramilitary is an organization whose structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but is not part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. Paramilitary units carr ...

organisation. In 2008 he

came out Coming out of the closet, often shortened to coming out, is a metaphor used to describe LGBT people's self-disclosure of their sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or gender identity. Framed and debated as a privacy issue, coming out of ...

as gay, and as a gay activist. In his youth McCrory formed a racist skinhead gang along with future UDA Brigadiers

Johnny Adair John Adair (born 27 October 1963), better known as Johnny Adair or Mad Dog Adair, is an Ulster loyalist and the former leader of the "C Company", 2nd Battalion Shankill Road, West Belfast Brigade of the Ulster Freedom Fighters (UFF). This was a ...

and "Fat" Jackie Thompson. He was knee-capped by the UDA for assaulting a pensioner. McCrory's first target was Francisco Notarantonio, who was set up by

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...

agent Brian Nelson to divert the UDA from targeting

Freddie Scappaticci Freddie Scappaticci (born c. 1946 Belfast) is a purported former high-level double agent in the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA), known by the codename "Stakeknife". Early life Scappaticci was born around 1946 and grew up in the Markets ...

. On 9 October 1987, Notarantonio, a 66-year-old who had been interned in 1971, was shot dead at his home in Ballymurphy. In July 1992 McCrory, Thompson and two others set off to target

Provisional Irish Republican Army The Irish Republican Army (IRA; ), also known as the Provisional Irish Republican Army, and informally as the Provos, was an Irish republican paramilitary organisation that sought to end British rule in Northern Ireland, facilitate Irish reu ...

leaders Brian Gillen and Martin Lynch. The UDA attackers were ambushed by the British Army on Finaghy Road North on the border between South and West Belfast and were fired upon. McCrory was arrested and received a long prison sentence. He eventually became the UDA officer in command at the

Maze Prison Her Majesty's Prison Maze (previously Long Kesh Detention Centre, and known colloquially as The Maze or H-Blocks) was a prison in Northern Ireland that was used to house alleged paramilitary prisoners during the Troubles from August 1971 to ...

and, as such, attended a meeting with

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...

Mo Mowlam Dr Marjorie "Mo" Mowlam (18 September 1949 – 19 August 2005) was a British Labour Party politician. She was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Redcar from 1987 to 2001 and served in the Cabinet as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Mini ...

, during the peace process. After his release, police accused him of involvement in a gun attack on a bar in August 2000 at the start of a

loyalist feud A loyalist feud refers to any of the sporadic feuds which have erupted almost routinely between Northern Ireland's various loyalist paramilitary groups during and after the ethno-political conflict known as the Troubles broke out in 1969. Th ...

with the

Ulster Volunteer Force The Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) is an Ulster loyalist paramilitary group. Formed in 1965, it first emerged in 1966. Its first leader was Gusty Spence, a former British Army soldier from Northern Ireland. The group undertook an armed campaign ...

(UVF). He appeared in an episode of ''

Danny Dyer's Deadliest Men ''Danny Dyer's Deadliest Men'' (''Danny Dyer's Deadliest Men 2: Living Dangerously'' in Series 2) is a documentary series broadcast on Bravo between 20 October 2008 and 28 September 2009. It followed Danny Dyer as he embarked on meeting men he ...

''. In the programme, Danny Dyer met McCrory in the Scottish seaside town of

Ayr Ayr (; sco, Ayr; gd, Inbhir Àir, "Mouth of the River Ayr") is a town situated on the southwest coast of Scotland. It is the administrative centre of the South Ayrshire council area and the historic county town of Ayrshire. With a population ...

, where McCrory was living. The two visited McCrory's former city of

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

. In 2015 four men were arrested in Glasgow and charged with plotting to kill to McCrory and Johnny Adair. Charges against one of the accused were subsequently dropped on 1 July 2015. The three other defendants, Antoin Duffy, Martin Hughes and Paul Sands, were convicted of the plot on 20 July 2015. McCrory died after an accidental fall on concrete steps near his home on 24 July 2022, at the age of 57. He suffered fatal head injuries.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McCrory, Sam 1965 births 2022 deaths Loyalists imprisoned during the Northern Ireland conflict Paramilitaries from Belfast UDA C Company members LGBT rights activists from Northern Ireland