Irish Republican News · December 17, 2003

English police charge Adairs with drug-dealing

The wife and son of notorious loyalist gangleader Johnny ``Mad Dog'' Adair have been charged with conspiracy to supply hard drugs.

Gina and Jonathan Adair were arrested yesterday, and are appearing before Bolton Magistrates this morning charged with conspiracy to supply heroin, cocaine and crack cocaine. Jonathan Adair was also charged with selling the drugs.

Gina Adair and her family fled to Bolton earlier this year to escape a deadly loyalist feud.

Johnny ``Mad Dog'' Adair remains in prison in the North of Ireland on charges of directing terrorism. He was commander of the UDA's `C-Company' on the Shankill Road in west Belfast.

Commenting on the charges, North Belfast Sinn Féin Assembly member Cathy Stanton said the Lower Shankill UDA had been involved in the mass importation and supply of drugs ``for years and years''.

``At the same time many of those in the leadership of the so called `C-Company' were paid agents of the Special Branch and their behaviour was tolerated and encouraged as they were killing Catholics and nationalists at the behest of the British State.

``Yet within months of the remnants of the Lower Shankill UDA arriving in Bolton the authorities there have taken action against their criminal activity.

``This contrasts sharply with the attitude of the PSNI to Johnny Adair and his gang when they operated in Belfast.

``It seems that the authorities in Britain where not prepared to tolerate criminal activity simply because many of those involved in it were also Special Branch agents.''

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