Northern Ireland police officers investigating the murder of Co Armagh solicitor Ms Rosemary Nelson yesterday searched the Portadown home of Pastor Kenny McClinton, a former "contact person" between the Decommissioning Agency and the LVF.
Detectives from the Nelson inquiry team, which is headed by the Assistant Chief Constable of Norfolk, Mr Colin Port, arrived at Mr McClinton's home shortly after 6 a.m. yesterday. They proceeded to carry out a four-hour search, removing a number of items, including a computer and videotapes for further examination.
Last night, Mr McClinton said he was "shocked and alarmed" by the search. He said he could think of no reason whatsoever why his home should be selected by the inquiry team.
Mr McClinton questioned police motives for the search, saying "nothing of a suspicious nature has been removed from my home. The whole thing is just crazy."
Mr McClinton repeated his condemnation of Ms Nelson's murder, saying he joined the nationalist community in calling for an independent inquiry into the murder.
"I would also ask the nationalist community to join me in calling for a full, independent, public inquiry into a number of Protestant deaths since the ceasefires. These deaths include the murder of Billy Wright, shot dead inside a maximum security prison."
Last night, neighbours claimed the police search of Mr McClinton's home had been stage-managed to coincide with a television appeal by Mr Port for information on the Nelson killing.
They accused police of attempting to make the family a "target for anyone with a grievance and a gun".
Yesterday, a spokesman for the inquiry team said: "As part of our ongoing investigations, a house was searched in Portadown today." He refused to comment further.