Hussey asks Creggan to stand against criminal gangs after another vicious shooting

UUP policing spokesperson Ross Hussey has called on the people of Creggan to take a stand against the criminal gangs responsible for shooting a young man in the ankles and leg in the estate on Tuesday night, August 9.

He labelled those responsible as “criminals and gangsters who still pollute the lives of so many people in Northern Ireland” and said their apparently ready access to weaponry is a matter of concern.

Mr Hussey, who is also his party’s spokesperson on the Policing Board, said: “The past few days have brought a stark reminder that criminal gangs still blight the lives of communities and seek to impose their rule by fear.

“Last night in the Creggan area of Londonderry a young man was attacked and shot in the legs.

“This was the latest in a depressingly long line of similar type attacks in the city and the ease with which these groups are able to acquire weapons and their willingness to use them, is a matter of grave concern.”

Mr Hussey said those responsible are heirs to legacy paramilitary groups and suggested they may be using guns that were supposed to have been decommissioned.

He said: “It is quite clear that many of the current criminal gangs operating in Northern Ireland have emerged from terrorist groupings as they have splintered.

Questions have been asked as to the source of their weaponry, and whilst some may indeed be old stock which was supposed to have been decommissioned, the fact remains that it is relatively easy for criminals to source new weapons.”