Member's statement: Victor Hamilton

Member's statement by Mr Doug Beattie MC on 10 February 2026.

MLA

Mr Doug Beattie MC

Party at the time

Ulster Unionist Party

Date

10 February 2026

Type

Member's statement

Business

Members' Statements

Heading

Victor Hamilton

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5435188

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I want to make a statement on Victor Hamilton, and I do so with the permission of his family. Victor Hamilton was originally from Carrickfergus. In 2022, he was murdered in Ballymena. Four people were involved in his murder, three of whom were foreign nationals. The chief suspect in that murder escaped justice by going back to Portugal. A second man was given six years for manslaughter — three behind bars and three on licence. After being behind bars for three years, he should have been deported. He was not, and he is now back out in the community. The other foreign national was given two years for withholding information. Due to time served, however, after one year's sentence, which should have been behind bars, he was released. He also should have been deported, but, again, he was allowed back into society. We have failed the victim's family in that regard. A bit of good news, however, is that the individual who escaped to Portugal has been arrested and faces extradition. How does the family know that? They read it in a newspaper. There has been no victims' care whatsoever. Nobody went to them and said, "This is what is happening". Nobody went to them and said, "This is what is happening to the individual who got six years behind bars", or "This is what is happening to the individual who got two years and should have been deported but was not". Nobody has been to the family whatsoever. I have long called for changes to the victim information scheme. I will continue to do so because it is letting people down. The family read about the perpetrators in a newspaper. The way in which we treat victims of crime and their families is absolutely scandalous. That is not a one-off. Victor Hamilton is another male who is largely forgotten and not spoken about in the Chamber or anywhere else. He joins the likes of Jim McFadden, whose family were let down by the system, and Michael and Marjorie Cawdery, whose family were also let down. We really need to deal with how we look after victims of crime in Northern Ireland. Right now, we are not doing that. What is this statement about? Is it about foreign nationals not receiving the full weight of our criminal justice system? Is it about victims' care? It is about both because you cannot have one without the other. First, the criminal justice system is there for a reason. It should act for a reason. Deportation is the responsibility of the Home Office — we know that — but our criminal justice system must trigger it. Secondly, victims deserve to be treated with care. They should not have to read in the newspaper about the arrest of somebody who may have murdered their loved one. That is what is happening. The system is failing. We are failing. We need to deal with that.

490 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

Jev’s structured answers

Assessed 21 October 2026 at 14:33 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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