Friends and family of local trader James Carson (32), gunned down in his Falls Road shop 30 years ago this week, gathered with residents from the St James' area last night to demand the truth about his killing.
It has long been believed that a loyalist gang which terrorised shopkeepers in the area — and who also took the lives of St James' newsagent Larry Murchan in September 1991 and Falls Road hairdresser Sean Hughes in September 1993 — were acting with the protection of the RUC.
Addressing the commemoration outside James Carson's former 7-11 shop at the Falls Road-Donegall Road junction, his business partner and friend Dermot Kennedy said the family had been treated with disdain by the RUC after the killing and that the inquest had been "a travesty".
He described James as "a character" who was impossible to dislike. He had a famed knack for making friends. It was no surprise that when he went to work for De Lorean briefly, he befriended John de Lorean himself, said Dermot. He also told of an incident at De La Salle school where James had been called in by the principal for a dressing down. "After 35 minutes, Brother Cornelius sent out for tea and scones and once again James had made a friend," he said. Dermot described how James had taken the name for the shop from a mammoth chain across the USA. When a solicitor's letter arrived from London on behalf of that giant firm demanding James take down the signage, he wrote back inviting them to come to the Falls Road and do so themselves — then framed the letter and hung it up in the shop.
Dermot Kennedy said the Carson family had been treated with disdain by the RUC. James body was left to lie in the shop for seven hours, despite police being told he had consented to organ donation. The delay in removing his body meant the organs were no longer viable for transplant. "On the evening news, footage showed James being bundled out in a body bag with his face visible, further adding to the trauma of his family."
"There had been no real investigation of the murder," said Dermot Kennedy. "The so-called police force were co-conspirators in what happened."
He added: "30 years ago, someone decided to end James' life. He was targeted because he was from our community. 30 years later his family and friends still have no answers as to why he was murdered or by whom. We are here today to send out a message: James is not forgotten. James will never be forgotten and we stand beside all the other families who still fight for justice and truth."
