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A well-known former Belfast estate agent has been found dead.

Philip Johnston, 51, died suddenly at a Co Down property on Wednesday, 12 years after he had been arrested for money laundering alongside murdered former UDA chief and police informer, Jim Gray.

All charges against Mr Johnston were subsequently withdrawn, clearing him of any suspicion of wrongdoing but friends say the last 12 years had been hell for him.

Police attended the scene in Bryansburn Road where Mr Johnston was declared dead and confirmed they are not treating his death as suspicious.

Friends of Mr Johnston said they were shocked by the news and said he had never recovered from the devastation he experienced over his arrest and subsequent charge.

They recalled he had been forced to have limited dealings with Jim Gray as part of the price for operating in East Belfast.

A friend of Mr Johnston said: “Philip was one of the nicest people you could meet and his arrest and charge was of great shame to him. When the police turned up to his business he let them in without a warrant and offered them any information they wanted. He had nothing to hide.

“He even had his gun licence revoked after holding it for 20 years for clay pigeon shooting.

“His dealings with Jim Gray amounted to renting out a flat and God only knows what pressure he was put under. If you wanted to work in East Belfast you had to cope with these paramilitaries.

“All charges against Philip were dropped, but he just never recovered. Philip carried the shame of other people’s doubt for years.

“To hear he has died suddenly is shocking and deeply saddening. I used to see him walking at Stormont in the mornings until quite recently. But he’d not been around for a while and I feel very sorry I’d not spoken to him for a few months.”

Mr Johnston was arrested in April 2005 on suspicion of money laundering and former UDA leader Jim Gray was arrested three days later.

Police initially suspected that Philip Johnston & Co was being used to launder money from Gray’s criminal activities but no evidence was ever produced.

Six months later Jim Gray was shot dead in his father’s home in Clarawood, East Belfast, after being expelled from the UDA.

And 16 months after his arrest, all charges against Mr Johnston were dropped without explanation.

A friend told Belfast Live: “It ruined Philip. He was not a crooked man. He was a decent man but this ruined his career and life. He was forced to sell his business and was dropped by the National Association of Estate Agents which was the end for him.

“Jim Gray got his hooks into Philip by demanding that he was given priority to buy a number of properties in Belfast. He had approached one of Philip’s staff who was terrified and Philip stepped in to deal with Gray. He was damned if he did and damned if he didn’t. My understanding is that Gray bought one property from Philip Johnston & Co and every rule was followed.

“Having known Philip personally I can say with hand on heart he was honest and was not involved in paramilitary or criminal activity and worked only to protect his staff. But it was the unravelling of his business and his life.

“He tried to start again, he tried to rebuild his business but he just never got on top of it. To hear he has died suddenly at 51 is horrific. I hope now he can rest in peace.”

A PSNI spokesman said: “Police attended the scene of the sudden death of a man aged in his 50s at a house in the Bryansburn Road area of Bangor on Wednesday, July 19. The death is not being treated as suspicious at this time.”