An inquest into the violent death of a suspected drug dealer was adjourned for 12 months in Tramore, Co Waterford, yesterday.
Dr Eoin Maughan, coroner, said the inquest into the death of 34-year-old Martin Nolan had opened on March 19th, 2002, when depositions were read into evidence by expert witnesses and a death certificate was issued.
At the time, closure could not be brought to the inquest with the cause of death not formally determined due to the ongoing Garda investigation.
Tramore-based Supt John Shanahan informed the coroner yesterday that he would be seeking a further adjournment of the matter.
"Unfortunately, we are not in a position to close the inquest and I need to make an application for a further adjournment for another year due to the ongoing investigation." The matter was then adjourned until March 16th, 2004. No relatives of the deceased were present for yesterday's brief proceedings.
Nolan disappeared on November 10th, 1999, just days before he was due in Waterford Circuit Court to face charges relating to the possession of thousands of euro worth of cannabis and ecstasy for sale or supply.
Blood belonging to the missing father-of-two was discovered a short time later in a forest near the local airport, which is just four miles from St Herblain Park in Waterford city where he was last seen alive by his estranged partner.
However, a murder inquiry did not get under way until July 2000 when a body was discovered at Clondonnell, a wooded area in the Comeragh Mountains, about five miles from the village of Rathgormack.
It took a further four months for the results of forensic tests carried out in Britain to identify formally the remains as being those of the missing man.
Gardaí remain at a loss as to why he was seized and killed. While he had no visible means of support, a normally reliable Garda source said Nolan was wealthy and unlikely to have run up any debts with drug wholesalers that he was unable to pay.
While he had been under close scrutiny for over 10 years, the dead man is believed to have been extremely careful not to keep large amounts of drugs or cash in his possession.
Local sources say he began selling drugs in the late 1980s, and went on to become one of the region's biggest dealers.
The main thrust of the Garda investigation into the death has concentrated on the drugs scene in Waterford, and there is no evidence that outside interests were involved though some sources suggest those responsible may now be living outside the country.
A large number of people in Ireland and the Netherlands have been questioned in connection with the case, but so far no one has been charged.
Several files on drug-related matters have, however, been prepared for the DPP. In all, more than 30 people have been held at various times as part of the investigation into Nolan's disappearance and subsequent killing.