Appeal over missing loyalist

Alan McCullough has been missing since last Wednesday

The Ulster Defence Association should tell the family of a missing man what happened to him if it is responsible for his disappearance, the Loyalist Commission has said.

Police are putting up posters of missing Alan McCullough, 21, from Belfast, whose disappearance is being linked to a loyalist paramilitary feud.

The loyalist was last seen leaving his home in the Shankill area of the city last Wednesday night.

Police have said they fear Mr McCullough has been murdered.

Loyalist Commission chairman Reverend Mervyn Gibson said on Tuesday his group had made representations to the UDA, but the loyalist paramilitaries "made no admission" about involvement in Mr McCullough's disappearance.

The commission has also been in contact with the missing man's family.

We think the worst - there is very little hope.

Barbara McCullough
Missing man's mother

The Loyalist Commission includes members of the three loyalist paramilitary groups - the Ulster Volunteer Force, Red Hand Commando and the Ulster Defence Association - along with Protestant clergymen.

It was set up to provide political analysis for the paramilitary groups.

Officers removed a small boat from Carrickfergus on Monday for examination by forensic scientists.

Mr McCullough had recently returned to Northern Ireland after fleeing from his home following a feud within the loyalist Ulster Defence Association earlier this year.

It is understood he was part of the faction led by jailed Shankill loyalist Johnny Adair.

Loyalist sources said his disappearance was linked to the murder of senior UDA figure John Gregg, who was shot dead by Adair's supporters in Belfast in February.

Speaking on Tuesday, Mr McCullough's mother said her son was probably dead.

Barbara McCullough said: "We think the worst. There is very little hope."

Loyalist tensions

Police investigating his disappearance ended their search of a reservoir in the Waterworks Park in north Belfast on Saturday afternoon. Nothing was found.

The police then turned their attention to a boat moored in Carrickfergus.

Detective Chief Inspector Will Kerr said they feared the worst.

"At this stage, we would have a belief that Alan may have been murdered," he said.

The bloody feud within the UDA was linked to the deaths of four men at the beginning of the year.

Johnny Adair and his associate John White were expelled from the UDA leadership last September, causing a split in the organisation.

In February, family and associates of Adair fled their homes for Scotland.

He remains in prison after the Northern Ireland Secretary, Paul Murphy, revoked his early release licence in January for his involvement in "a litany of terrorist crimes".