Death of British killer leaves questions unanswered

An infamous member of the British Army’s Military Reaction Force, Clive Graham Williams, has died, it has been reported.

Clive Graham Williams, or ‘Taff’, was the prime shooter wanted in connection with a number of murders and attempted murders of civilians in Belfast in 1972.

The charity Paper Trail connected him to at least six serious incidents after discovering files which named him directly, although they redacted his name due to ongoing investigations.

Williams’ death was announced on a Facebook memorial site to the Royal Australian Corps of Military Police on 29th December 2021.

The former ‘elite’ British army figure was wanted for questioning in a number of murders and attempted murders in Ireland, including teenagers and women, mostly on the streets of Belfast.

Williams received a military medal for that period, but never spoke about it as it would have left him open to prosecution for murder and attempted murder.

He only stood trial in 1973 after he shot four unarmed civilians with a non-Army-issue Thompson machine-gun on 22nd June 1972, but was not convicted.

Two weeks prior to this attack at the terminus on the Glen Road, single mother Jean Smyth-Campbell was murdered in one of the attacks linked to Williams.

“Williams’ death fits squarely with the British government’s strategy for dealing with the legacy of the past in the North of Ireland: Denial, Delay, and Death,” said Ciarán Mac Airt of Paper Trail.

“Williams goes to his grave with many of the secrets of Britain’s dirty war. He also escapes earthly justice as he should have served time for serial murders and attempted murders.”

Niall Ó Murchú of Kinnear and Co. Solicitors, who represent the family of Jean Smyth-Campbell whose case was recently heard at the Supreme Court in London, said:

“This is a worrying development. This family expected Williams to be interviewed when the investigation into Jean’s murder began in August 2019.

“Williams and his MRF colleagues were cowards who only murdered defenceless civilians, and then ran away and hid. He and they should be remembered as such.

“Additionally, the family deserve an explanation about why a suspect in the murder of their mother and sister wasn’t interviewed for more than two years.”

Urgent Appeal