COLERAINE, Northern Ireland, May 26 (UPI) -- A banned Northern Ireland loyalist paramilitary organization was responsible for the slaying of a Catholic youth worker, the man's widow says.
Evelyn McDaid, wife of Kevin Brendan McDaid, 49, said Monday the mob that attacked her and her husband on Sunday shouted they were members of the Ulster Defense Association as they beat Kevin McDaid to death on a street in Coleraine, a city in Ulster's County Derry, The Guardian reported.
The UDA, which has been outlawed as a terrorist group, is officially maintaining a ceasefire although local officials say it is still engaging in criminal acts and intimidation, reportedly maintaining a strong presence in the Coleraine area.
Evelyn McDaid urged no retaliation for her husband's slaying, for which nine men have been arrested.
Police Service of Northern Ireland Detective Chief Inspector Frankie Taylor told The Guardian authorities believe there was a "sectarian motive" in the killing. Police McDaid was a "well-known and well-liked" youth worker who had tried to bridge the gap between Catholics and Protestants in Ulster.
