Eddie Fullerton

Edward "Eddie" Fullerton (1935 – 25 May 1991) was a Sinn Féin councillor from Inishowen in County Donegal, Ireland. He was killed at his Buncrana home in May 1991 by members of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA).[1]

Eddie Fullerton
Donegal County Councillor
In office
1979–1991
ConstituencyBuncrana
Personal details
Born(1935-02-09)9 February 1935
Died25 May 1991(1991-05-25) (aged 56)
Buncrana, Inishowen, County Donegal
Political partySinn Féin
Spouse(s)Diana Fullerton

The eldest of John and Mary Fullerton's 20 children, Fullerton emigrated to Scotland at the age of 18, and then moved to England. He became involved in Irish republicanism in Birmingham, where he also met and married his wife Diana. They returned to Ireland in 1975. He was elected to Donegal County Council for Sinn Féin in 1979, and held his seat until his assassination at age 56.

At two o'clock in the morning, on 25 May 1991, Fullerton and his wife were woken by the sound of their front door being knocked in with a sledgehammer. Ulster loyalist paramilitaries shot Fullerton six times from the stairs as he left the bedroom to investigate the noise.[2]

A month later, a documentary on British television revealed that a police file from Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) intelligence containing Fullerton's photograph and details was found in the possession of the UDA in Derry. The weapon used to kill him was recovered two years later. The perpetrators were never found. The Fullerton family has long campaigned for an independent public inquiry into the events surrounding his death.[3]

This was the third assassination of an elected representative in the Republic of Ireland since its independence from the United Kingdom.

The shooting dead by the IRA's Derry Brigade of high ranking UDA commander and UDP member Cecil McKnight in the Waterside area of Derry City in June the same year was claimed as retaliation for the death of Fullerton.[4][5]

References
  1. McDonald, Henry (2003-04-20). "The double agent who helped run terror cell". The Observer. ISSN 0029-7712. Retrieved 2020-02-18.
  2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-02-03. Retrieved 2009-01-19.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. "Ó Snodaigh seeks clarifications on Fullerton case". sinnfein.ie.
  4. "CAIN: Sutton Index of Deaths". cain.ulster.ac.uk. Retrieved 2020-02-18.
  5. "Londonderry Orangemen murdered during the Troubles". www.londonderrysentinel.co.uk. Retrieved 2020-02-18.


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