Quinn Family Condemn Billboard Attacks

The parents of murdered South Armagh man Paul Quinn have expressed their hurt after their new billboard on The Square in Crossmaglen was destroyed by fire in the early hours of Wednesday March 3rd. The billboard highlights the brutal manner in which Paul was killed with the heading “MURDER! Is this the ‘Peace’ you signed up for?” and has been attacked and destroyed four times previously. Numerous other posters have been stolen in the past in the Cullyhanna and Crossmaglen areas.

Chairman for the group, Jim McAllister issued the following statement, “This recent attack on our poster in Crossmaglen is further concrete evidence that a malicious campaign is being waged upon the Quinn Family by Sinn Fein type Republicans. This shameful behavior began in November 2007, after our public meeting in Crossmaglen and has continued ever since. We will not be bullied and we will replace them.” Continuing on Chairman McAllister said “On several occasions we have publicly called upon Sinn Fein representatives to call for an end to this vicious attack on the memory of a young man who was callously beaten to death, but Sinn Fein still stay silent. Their councillors can talk at length about other matters of vandalism and thuggery, but when it comes to attacks on the Quinn support group, they fall strangely silent.” We also hear regularly about “safety groups” who claim to be on top of things in South Armagh but they too are mysteriously silent about vandalism, theft, thuggery and arson when these things are inflicted on the Quinn Support Group.

Breege Quinn, mother of the murdered man said “It seems some people cannot bear to look at things which remind them of how they slaughtered our Paul, well, they will have to look at them. This campaign of destruction against the our posters is clear and incontrovertible evidence of how desperate the murderers are to remove all evidence of our justice campaign. Our efforts to seek justice for Paul will continue and I would like to express our thanks to those who have supported us to date in various ways.

Local SDLP representatives have been in touch with the Quinn family and the family welcome their efforts to help and the statements they have issued.

Paul Quinn was brutally murdered in October 2007 by a group of up to ten men in a cattle shed outside Castleblayney. Paul’s parents Stephen and Breege, have maintained that is was the IRA who kidnapped and murdered their son.

NEW PAUL QUINN SIGN ERECTED IN CROSSMAGLEN SQUARE

The parents of murdered South Armagh man, Paul Quinn, and their support group have erected a new sign just off the square in Crossmaglen. In the past, previous signs erected by the group have been vandalised or completely destroyed. A spokesperson for the group said, “Our new billboard has been constructed using iron girders and box iron, and should be a little bit harder to remove by this anti social element. This isn’t the first time our posters have been attacked.”

“It’s obvious the presence of our posters is annoying a small minority of thugs, perhaps even those responsible for Paul’s brutal death. Our other, smaller posters have been systematically removed also, usually preceding republican held events. That is very alarming and it is a very clear indication that a campaign is being waged by South Armagh Republicans to deface, destroy or remove our posters as quickly as we put them up. We have reported all thefts and vandalisms to the PSNI.”

In addition the parents of Paul Quinn have asked, on numerous occasions, for these pathetic and thuggish acts of vandalism to stop, and have called upon local Sinn Fein councillors to publicly condemn such acts. As yet, there has been no response from Sinn Fein to the Quinn’s request.

Our spokesperson continued, “In addition to the previously stolen posters in Crossmaglen, four similar posters have been stolen in Cullyhanna on or around the 4^th of February.

We will continue to replace our posters until such time as there are left alone”