| Bleary Darts Club shooting | |
|---|---|
| Part ofThe Troubles | |
| Location | Bleary,County Down,Northern Ireland |
| Date | 27 April 1975 22:20 PM |
| Target | Irish Catholics,Irish nationalists |
Attack type | Mass shooting,mass murder |
| Weapons | |
| Deaths | 3 civilians |
| Injured | 1 |
| Perpetrator | Ulster Volunteer Force |
TheBleary Darts Club shooting was amass shooting that took place on 27 April 1975 in the village ofBleary,Northern Ireland. Members of theUlster Volunteer Force (UVF) burst into adarts club frequented byCatholics and opened fire on the crowd, killing three civilians and wounding a fourth. The attack is one of many that has been linked to theGlenanne gang.
The 'Bleary Darts Club' was frequented mainly by Catholics but was also visited by Protestants.[1] On the night of 27 April 1975, there were about thirty men inside.[2] At about 10:40pm, three maskedloyalist gunmen kicked the door open and opened fire on the crowd with aSterling submachine gun, aWebley Revolver and a shotgun.[2] When the burst of gunfire stopped, a customer switched the lights off so the gunmen could not see. There was then another burst of gunfire, followed by several single shots. Another customer kicked the door shut, and the gunmen left.[2] Three men were killed, all Catholic civilians: father-of eight John Feeney (45), father-of-six Joseph Toman (48), and father-of-four Brendan O'Hara (38). A fourth man, a Protestant, was seriously wounded.[1][2][3][4]
The attack was claimed by the "Protestant Action Force", a cover name used by theUlster Volunteer Force (UVF), anUlster loyalist paramilitary group. It is believed the attackers were part of theUVF Mid-Ulster Brigade.[5] Six days before the attack at Bleary, the group had claimed responsibility for killing three Catholic civilians—two brothers and their pregnant sister—in a booby-trap bomb attack at a house nearGranville, County Tyrone.[6][7]
Loyalists Stuart Ashtown and Derek McFarland admitted to the attack in 1980[8] along with a string of other offenses, including the shooting of Catholic civilians Marian Rafferty and Thomas Mitchell.[9]
The shooting is one of many in the area that has been linked to theGlenanne gang; a group of loyalists that included police officers from theRoyal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) and soldiers from theUlster Defence Regiment (UDR).[8] The sub-machine gun was used in theMiami Showband massacre, which was carried out by members of the group three months later.[2] Circumstantial evidence linksRobin Jackson to the attack. Among other evidence, a witness saw him in a car near the club the Sunday before the attack, and saw the same car near the club again, about half an hour before the attack.[8]
