Masonic four: Case dropped

Published 7 Sep 2010 10:00

THE case against four men - who were charged in connection with the alleged attempted murder of a man outside Dumbarton’s Masonic Hall - has been dropped.

Almost a year since the shocking attack on Derek Cassels, the Crown Office has decided it will take no further action against Norman Allerdyce, Robert Currie, Craig McLeary and William Wallace.

The assault came during a period of heightened tensions following two out-of-season ‘Orange’ marches through Dumbarton in the space of two months, one which had taken place earlier that day.

This week a Crown Office source told the Reporter: “After a full and careful consideration of all the facts and circumstances, Crown Counsel decided that there should be no further proceedings.” A police source this week said they were not looking for anyone else in connection with the attack. The source added: “We understand the fiscal is no longer pursuing this matter and Strathclyde Police has concluded its investigation.”

The Reporter believes that Mr Cassels, from Balloch, who was 38 at the time of the incident, has been left permanently disabled and shows little sign of improvement.

On the day of the attack, Saturday October 24 2009, The Pride of the Rock Flute Band had organised a march through the town.

Feelings were still raw following on from a much larger march in August, staged by the Provincial Grand Black Chapter of Scotland, which organised 3,000 people from 44 flute bands to descend on Dumbarton town centre.

There were fierce objections on one side and legal challenges on the other before the August march was allowed to go ahead.

The cost of policing the event was put at around £107,000.

A wave of bad feeling engulfed the town, with objectors believing the march should not have been allowed as the Black Chapter had no links with Dumbarton, while those in favour were upset at the way in which organisers had to fight for the freedom of expression to stage it.

These tensions had hardly had time to subside when in October Dumbarton’s Pride of the Rock Flute Band applied to stage a special march to commemorate its 21st anniversary.

Objections were again lodged to try and prevent it and there was discussion of protests being staged.

Then Saturday October 17 - the weekend before the march - Bankhead Orange Halls in Dumbarton’s Broadmeadow Industrial Estate was firebombed.

Fortunately no-one was injured in the terrible attack but community leaders expressed their shock.

Dumbarton councillor David McBride, along with others, believed the incident was a result of the “heightened tensions”.

He was one of the objectors to The Pride of the Rock’s march.

At the meeting to decide if the parade would go ahead, which took place four days before the fire attack, Chief Inspector Gray told the Licensing committee: “We have already received intelligence that there is local opposition and there is probably going to be a protest to oppose the parade.

“However, we can manage this successfully.”

Councillors unanimously voted to allow the parade after a legal officer advised them that if they blocked it then it was “highly likely” a sheriff would overturn the decision, as had happened in August with the Black Chapter.

Band secretary Craig McLeary, one of the men later arrested in connection with the attack on Mr Cassels, said: “I would like to give assurances that the organisers will be meeting with the chief steward and also the police prior to marching starting.”

Indeed, on the day of the march around 70 officers kept order and around 100 spectators watched and the event passed without incident or arrest.

Brian Adam, chairman of the Pride of the Rock Flute Band said: “We were more than delighted with the way it went.

“I didn’t think there would be any trouble.”

However, later that night Derek Cassels was left fighting for his life after being beaten by a mob outside the Masonic Hall at around 9.15pm.

There were claims someone outside had thrown a lit firework into the main hall, which sparked the trouble.

Some Pride of the Rock band members were inside the Masonic Hall at the time.

In the days that followed, religious leaders from both sides of the divide urged calm in the community.

Then on Friday November 6, Norman Allerdyce, Robert Currie, Craig McLeary and William Wallace, who were then aged 44, 39, 29 and 24 respectively, were all arrested in connection with the attempted murder of Mr Cassels.

The four men appeared at Dumbarton Sheriff Court on Monday November 9 last year in relation to the assault in Church Street.

None of the men made any plea or declaration.

Police had requested that they were remanded into custody, but they were all bailed pending further investigations following the private hearing.

What definitive account of what happened on the night Mr Cassels was beaten now looks unlikely.

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This article appeared in Dumbarton & Vale of Leven Reporter 07 Sep 10

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