CFAD reply to Sean Cassidy letter

CFAD would like to clarify a number of points in relation to the letter from Sean Cassidy in last week’s NBN.

CFAD did not attempt to persuade anyone to kill Sean Cassidy; CFad did not plant a pipe bomb at his home; CFAD did not fire on his home in 2008; Cfad did not paint any graffiti on walls about him; CFAD did not phone him to extort money.

CFAD states categorically that if Sean believes we did any of the above, he should phone the PSNI and name the CFAD individuals he believes to be involved.

However CFAD did meet Sean in a car on the Westland Road. We also asked Sean to come forward in the sanctuary of the chapel to reveal anything he knew about the importation and distribution of drugs.

CFAD knows that criminal elements did attempt to extract money from Sean and that this occurred both by phone and through face to face threats by known criminal elements in Ardoyne.

CFAD met with political representatives of groups allegedly connected to these individuals and informed the groups of the names of the people involved in extortion.

CFAD states clearly that it has no influence over people or groups who seek to exploit our efforts to tackle the drugs scourge.

As for Sean, he admitted that he personally snorted £100,000 of cocaine. Sean needs to explain how he funded this drug habit. He also needs to tell his family and friends the whole truth and stop them from making fools of themselves in the streets. Ridiculous counter claims against CFAD members’ families are just feeble attempts to deflect the truth.

However CFAD must also say that Sean and many of its members have known each other a long time and were considered friends by both parties. So this is not a vendetta nor a purge against Sean’s family but rather an attempt to tackle an insidious evil which poses a grave threat to our community.

In conclusion let us remind ourselves of Sean’s words last week: ‘no-one more than myself knows the dangers, pain and loss that comes with hard drugs.’

Herein lies the crux of the matter, Sean knows the pain and suffering that drugs cause.
The people dealing in drugs know the destruction caused, turning children into criminals, thugs and thieves dependant on drugs; families turning against each other, mother against son, family against family; loss, pain, suffering and sometimes death. This is reality.

This is Sean’s contradiction, he says he understands, but he won’t come forward and help to end it. If he wants to set the record straight Sean knows what he has to do.

CFAD