Powerful but troubled US gun group sees shakeup amid public dispute

A dramatic leadership struggle in the most powerful US gun-owners organization has resulted in its president Oliver North saying Saturday that he will not serve a second term.

North, who gained international notoriety as a key figure in the Iran-Contra arms scandal under President Ronald Reagan, was forced out as president of the influential National Rifle Association by the group's longtime CEO, Wayne LaPierre.

An NRA board member, Richard Childress, read a letter from North at the group's annual convention in which North said his efforts to fight alleged financial mismanagement in the NRA had led to his ouster.

North, who became president only last year, alleged in a letter to the NRA's executive committee that LaPierre had purchased more than USD 200,000 in personal items and charged them to a vendor, The Washington Post reported.

North called for the NRA to establish a committee to review the group's finances. LaPierre put a different light on the men's differences, accusing North of issuing a blunt ultimatum to either "resign or there will be destructive allegations made against me and the NRA," LaPierre said in a letter published Friday by the Wall Street Journal. LaPierre said the threat "alarmed and disgusted" him.

Amid the bitter internal spat, the NRA meanwhile has filed a lawsuit against its advertising agency Ackerman McQueen, complaining of unjustified billings. Ackerman employs North to host a TV show called "American Heroes." The firm called the suit "frivolous (and) inaccurate."