11 Facts About Ernie Elliott

Ernie Elliott was appointed as lieutenant to the WDA's deputy leader Davy Fogel, a close drinking buddy.

Ernie Elliott, a short but stockily built man, was a notorious "hard man" on the Shankill who was used to meting out physical violence.

Ernie Elliott became commander of the WDA in 1972 while Charles Harding Smith was detained in London on gun-running charges, holding the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel.

Ernie Elliott became somewhat notorious in the UDA for expressing the notion that Protestants and Catholics were both equal victims of oppression and that the working class elements of the communities had more in common with each other than their respective middle classes.

Ernie Elliott's professed views were not shared by many of his fellow WDA members, with 1 May 1972 issue of WDA News including an article that featured far right calls for racial purity.

Ernie Elliott had been blasted in the face with a shotgun.

Ernie Elliott claimed that he and Elliott had been drinking in the UDA clubs of the Shankill Road and had then driven in their official WDA car to Sandy Row to continue drinking.

The republicans recognised Ernie Elliott and separated the two men, beating up Ernie Elliott's companion but shooting the WDA leader dead.

The police added that they believed Ernie Elliott had actually been killed on the Shankill and that his companion had been released after being assaulted with instructions to relay the story he had told them.

Ernie Elliott's death had been the result of a drunken brawl that ended in gunfire.

Ernie Elliott's funeral a few days after his killing was a big event on the Shankill.