UDA boss was left bloodied and bruised after beating
UDA leaders have hauled the organisation back from the brink of all out war.
Loyalist guns will not be back on the streets in a loyalist feud, but those behind an attack on north Belfast brigadier John Bunting WILL be hunted down and punished.
As tensions continue to simmer in the Tigers Bay enclave, the Sunday World can reveal a series of crisis meetings brokered by terror boss Jackie McDonald has resulted in a ‘no guns’ edict in the hope of heading off a blood-soaked feud.
But the pack responsible for the daylight attack on Bunting face brutal sanction.
Sources within the UDA say they will be begging for a bullet when they fall into the hands of the paramilitaries hell bent on revenge for the bold assault on the North Belfast chief last Friday afternoon.
The renegade loyalists are to face a ‘romper room’ style attack where they will be beaten to a bloodied mess by several members of the illegal organisation, sometimes tortured over a period several days.
What has been decided by UDA chiefs is that the loyalist dissidents cannot be seen to escape unscathed for their blatant and public revolt against the leadership of the organisation.
“When they get them they will be begging to have a bullet in the back of the head. Let me tell you something that would be an easier option because what these boys have planned isn’t pretty. They will be begging for mercy. You can’t take on a brigadier of the UDA and get a slap round the head, this will be brutal, violence to the extreme.
“The UDA will make a show of all of them, it will be a brutal warning to all who are involved in making a move against the leadership. The message will be clean and the scars on their faces and bodies will be a public reminder to all,” said a senior loyalist source.
John Bunting was dragged from his car alongside Tommy Pearson in Mervue Street after being ambushed by a 15 to 20 man gang last week.
The premeditated attack, an object was thrown in front of Bunting’s car forcing him to stop, left the North Belfast boss bruised and shaken immediately sparking fears of an all out UDA feud.
Within minutes of the attack members of the UDA in North and South Belfast were mobilised with the order to hunt down the rebels.
Their immediate instruction was to kill those responsible however the Sunday World can reveal that while UDA members continue to track down the defectors murder is no longer on their minds.
“The word has been issued that they are not to be killed but they will be brought to the relevant people and punished, severely. Their punishment will be made public and then they are gone, not killed but expelled from the country.
“The leadership wants it made clear to everyone that this will not be tolerated, and take it from me the only reason why they are not being shot dead is because of the repercussions,” he said
Sources confirmed the UDA’s U-turn was prompted by the Inner Councils belief, Jackie McDonald’s in particular, that any murder could lead to a cut in financial support from the government for their ‘community groups’.
It would also draw unnecessary police attention to their illegal activities which include extortion and drug dealing.
As revealed last week by the Sunday World the dissident faction of the UDA is being led by Bill Hill who also has the support of one-time North Belfast chief Andre Shoukri.
John Bunting immediately after being beaten in the street
In the immediate aftermath of the Bunting’s beating the men fled and barricaded themselves inside several homes in the Tigers Bay area.
Bunting, in-between mobilising his paramilitary troops, made an instantaneous report to the PSNI claiming his phone had been stolen during the assault.
The PSNI raided several houses reported to have been used by dissidents with several men receiving police notifications that their lives were in danger and “that the use of firearms cannot be ruled out”.
The houses were raided with the motive to find Bunting’s phone however the Sunday World understands it has yet to be located.
Sources say Bunting immediately rang his phone company to have his phone blocked, fearful of the information and telephone contacts the mobile held.
Four men were questioned in relation to last Friday’s incident but were released on bail pending further investigations.