Gardaí believe a man shot dead in Dublin's north inner city on Tuesday night was killed as part of a dispute that has already claimed two lives in Ballymun.
Jason ‘Buda’ Molyneux (27) - who has 122 previous convictions - had been warned by the Garda his life was at risk due to the Kinahan-Hutch feud.
However, he had also clashed with criminals from Ballymun. Those men had also threatened his life because they believed he played a role in a serious attack on one of their associates in Dublin three years ago.
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Another senseless murder in North Dublin. Situation is out of control. If people were being murdered in leafy Southside suburbs this Government would act with urgency and prioritise putting an end to these murders. But this is the Northside! Strong decisive action needed.
— Darragh O'Brien (@DarraghOBrienTD) January 31, 2018
The murder comes 10 days after Derek Coakley Hutch (27) was shot dead outside Cloverhill Prison, west Dublin - the latest victim of the Kinahan-Hutch feud - and the night before his funeral.
The shooting occurred at about 9.45pm on Tuesday at James Larkin House on the North Strand in Dublin 1.
The victim, a father of one, was shot up to six times in the chest and stomach. Witnesses said the gunman fled the scene on foot. The emergency services were called and he was taken by ambulance to the Mater Hospital where he was later pronounced dead.
A van believed to have been used in the murder was later found partially burnt.
Gardaí at Store Street Garda station are now appealing for information on a man and vehicle believed to be connected to the incident.
Confidence
At a press briefing at the scene of the killing on Wednesday, senior officers urged members of the public to come forward with any information they may have.
“The community should have confidence in us. On this particular occasion one of our patrols came across the incident, so one of our patrols could have actually witnessed the incident, it was here that quickly. We are in the vicinity all the time,” said Superintendent Gerard Murphy. “This is a callous murder, this is a murder that has occurred in an area that has been the subject of a number of murders in the past. We need the help of the community to assist us. We are out there on an ongoing basis, but we need the help of the community.
“Following the shooting, witnesses are indicating to us that a male left the scene, no better described than in dark clothing. We don’t know the direction of travel at this stage, and that’s why we’re appealing to witnesses out there as to where this person would likely have gone.”
Supt Murphy confirmed that a white Renault Kangoo with registration 10-D-126064, which was found partially burnt out on a walkway just south of the Eastlink toll bridge near York Road just after midnight, is believed to be connected to the shooting.
The van was seen heading in a southerly direction soon after the shooting.
“What we’re appealing to the general public is: has anybody seen that vehicle in the last couple of days, has anybody seen that vehicle in the locality prior to the shooting, and in particular has anyone seen that vehicle between 9.46pm and 12.09am last night into this morning,” Supt Murphy said.
He added that a full investigation team, supported by national units, has been established in response to the attack, and said people can come forward to gardaí in a confidential manner without fear of repercussion.
“We understand the hurt that’s out there with the community, but we need the community to help us as well.”
The press briefing took place just down the road from Our Lady of Lourdes Church on Seán McDermott Street where the funeral of Derek Coakley Hutch, also aged 27, was wrapping up at the same time.
Coakley Hutch was shot dead outside Cloverhill Prison earlier this month in a case that is being treated as linked to the Kinahan-Hutch feud, and Molyneux was said to have attended a wake for his friend at a funeral home close to James Larkin House where he himself was murdered hours later.
The scene in a public area just off the busy North Strand Road is located a short walk from where taxi driver Eddie Hutch was shot dead almost exactly two years ago.
On Wednesday morning, a busy cycle lane into the city was closed to facilitate the ongoing Garda investigation.
‘Awful’
As primary school children clambered under police tape on the way out of the flats complex, one local woman walking her dog described the shooting. “I was watching the Liverpool match and next thing I heard it all happening right underneath my window,” she said. “It’s just awful. In all the years I’ve lived here I’ve never seen anything like this.
“My son was coming home from his girlfriend’s last night and had to show his ID on the way in,” she said.
“I heard all the commotion going on, sirens going off last night,” said a father, with his two children on the way to school.
The scene of the shooting is located right next to a playground frequented by local children, he said.
“That’s where my children play, they might have been out there last night if the weather was any good.
“I drank with that lad [Molyneux] at a wedding before, he wasn’t a bad chap,” he added.
A note signed affixed to pole of a street sign nearby read: “Jason you were a true blue, you’ll be sadly missed by all, always had a smile for all, always helped your neighbours, even the old up and down the stairs. We will never ever forget you.
“We pray for peace. We pray for your loving mother, sister, niece who adored you, and your children. Gentle Jesus wrap him in your arms. No words can explain our loss. We pray that all the violence stops.”
Ballymun link
Tuesday night’s shooting appears to be linked to the Ballymun-based dispute rather than the Kinahan-Hutch feud. However, sources stressed the investigation into the latest attack was still in the early stages.
Last Friday, a convicted armed robber from north inner city Dublin was wounded in a shooting outside a boxing tournament at the National Stadium on South Circular Road. The man wounded was at one time closely associated with criminals from both the Kinahan and Hutch sides of the feud, though is closer to the Hutch faction.
However, gardaí now believe the attack outside the stadium was linked to the feud in Ballymun, rather than the Kinahan-Hutch feud.
As part of that feud, two people were killed in a gun attack in Ballymun last summer and two others were wounded but survived.
Mother-of-six Antoinette Corbally (48), and Clinton Shannon, a 30-year-old Dubliner, were killed in the attack last August. They were shot dead outside the Corbally family Ballymun home in an attack intended for Ms Corbally's brother Derek "Bottler" Devoy (38). He escaped uninjured.
Molyneux was regarded as a dangerous criminal involved on the Hutch side of the worsening feud, which has cost 14 lives to date.
In recent years while on remand in a Dublin prison he appeared before the courts and asked the judge to sentence him because he would be moved out of the remand wing into another area of the prison system.
He said he feared for his safety in the section of the jail where he was being kept at the time. He is from the area where he was shot and was on bail relating to several, mostly minor, offences.
Gardaí are appealing for witnesses to contact them at Store Street Garda Station on 01 666 800.
