A LEADING suspect in the murder of loyalist John Boreland has gone on the run as detectives close in on the killer who shot the former UDA leader last month.
Houses have been searched in north Belfast and Newtownabbey in the hunt for the man who has served a previous prison sentence for manslaughter.
Three men were remanded in custody this week accused of involvement in the murder of the former UDA brigadier.
The 46-year-old was shot at close range with a shotgun as he got out of his car to walk to his flat in Sunningdale Gardens on August 7. He died at the scene from catastrophic head injuries.
On Thursday Thomas O'Hara (29) from Ayrshire in Scotland along with Darren McAllister (33) and Thomas Pearson (61), were charged with perverting the course of justice in connection with the killing.
O'Hara, who was detained by police in Scotland, has close associations with Belfast based loyalists and was known to regularly travel to Northern Ireland for loyalist band parades.
McAllister, of Carrs Glen Park, and Pearson, from Cliftondene Park, both have links to the mainstream UDA.
All three appeared at Belfast Magistrates' Court amid heavy security on Thursday.
High-profile loyalist Andre Shoukri, a close associate of the murder victim, was among those present in the public gallery.
Shoukri and Boreland had been targeted in a previous gun attack back in 2014.
O'Hara, McAllister and Pearson are accused of destroying a silver Renault Megane sought by police in connection with the murder on a date between August 6-11.
All three were charged with perverting the course of justice in connection with the killing.
No further details about the case were disclosed in court but the Irish News understands that a hunt for the key suspect, the man detectives believe to have pulled the trigger, is currently underway.
The man, a well known loyalist with a history of violence, has not been seen at his Ballysillan home since the Boreland murder.
Sources say Scottish police have also been helping with the search.
Loyalist Leader Jackie McDonald has previously denied mainstream UDA involvement in the murder, saying speculation that the UDA sanctioned the killing was "complete fabrication and without foundation".
"I, and my colleagues in South Belfast UPRG (Ulster Political Research Group) have worked tirelessly in recent years to bring loyalist communities together and we certainly didn't want to see any more bloodshed", he added.
A spokesperson for the PSNI said: "Police enquiries are continuing".
