Two arrested over Haddock gun attack

Two men have been arrested in connection with the attempted murder of leading loyalist paramilitary Mark Haddock.

Police have confirmed that one man was arrested earlier this morning, with the second being taken into custody this afternoon.

Both men are helping police with their inquires while a search operation is ongoing.

Mark Haddock, 36, originally from the Mount Vernon area of north Belfast, was shot close to his home in the Mossley area of the Doagh Road shortly before 3.30pm on Tuesday and remains in a serious condition in hospital.

It has also emerged that Mr Haddock may have been lured to the area, where he was subsequently ambushed and shot.

He was been taken to the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast, where he was treated for six gunshot wounds.

Loyalists are being blamed for carrying out the attack

Mr Haddock, who is suspected of being a senior member of the Ulster Volunteer Force, is currently on bail facing a charge of attempted murder.

He was accused of attempting to kill nightclub doorman Trevor Gowdy in Monkstown in December 2002.

Mr Gowdy was found unconscious in the Monkstown Estate. He had been severely beaten with an iron bar and a hatchet.

The trial began at Belfast Crown Court last year, but was stopped after Mr Gowdy broke down in the witness box and was later deemed medically unfit to continue. Earlier this month, Mr Gowdy was granted permission to testify from a secret location in England.

Haddock is also at the centre of an investigation by the Police Ombudsman's Office, whose officers are looking into claims of collusion linked to a string of murders.

(EF)