The man killed by a shotgun blast at a house in Drogheda on Wednesday was considered by the Garda to be one of Ireland's largest drug-traffickers.
Patrick Farrell, a car dealer from Newry, Co Down, was targeted in a number of operations involving the Garda and the RUC. Mr Farrell, who was in his mid-40s, was believed to be one of the major suppliers of cannabis to Dublin and to have been behind a number of significant shipments of the drug from overseas in recent years.
He came to Garda attention during the investigation of a seizure of £500,000 worth of cannabis in Co Wexford in 1994.
Senior Garda sources told The Irish Times yesterday that they believed Mr Farrell financed and organised cannabis shipments, but always "stayed in the background". He was tipped to take over much of the drug business in Dublin lost by another criminal who was arrested by British police last year and is currently in custody in Britain.
The bodies of Mr Farrell and Ms Lorraine Farrell (29) were found in her mother's house at Boyle O'Reilly Terrace, Drogheda, at about 9 p.m. on Wednesday. The two, who were not related, had gunshot wounds to the head.
"At present we're not looking for anyone else in relation to the incident", Insp Vincent Rowan, of Drogheda Garda station, said yesterday. "However, we are keeping an open mind as to what happened, as we are waiting for the results of forensic examinations and post-mortems on the two bodies."
The bodies of the two were found in an upstairs bedroom. Ms Farrell's body was on the floor, with a shotgun lying close by. She had suffered a shotgun blast to the side of the head. Mr Farrell was on the bed and had also been shot in the head. It appeared both barrels of the shotgun were fired in each case.
The locations of the bodies and the gun suggested that Ms Farrell shot Mr Farrell before turning the gun on herself, but gardai said that no conclusions could be drawn until forensic and post-mortem examinations were completed.
However, gardai have been told that Lorraine Farrell had recently borrowed the shotgun from another man, who had a licence for it and wanted to sell it. It is believed she told the owner that she knew a possible buyer who wanted to see the gun.
Lorraine Farrell had worked in Newry until about a year ago, when she moved back to Drogheda. Mr Farrell, who was married with children, had a car dealership in the town. The two are believed to have known each other for about three years.
The time of death was not clear yesterday, but appeared to be between 2 p.m. and about 6.30 p.m. on Wednesday.
Mr Farrell arrived at the house at about 11 a.m., parking his large maroon-coloured €300 Turbo diesel Mercedes outside.
Later that day Ms Farrell's mother, Peggy, and her partner arrived at the house and watched the Irish team playing their World Cup qualifying match on television. They told gardai they had no idea of what had happened until after the match, at about 9 p.m., when they went upstairs and made the gruesome discovery.
Lorraine Farrell was described by neighbours yesterday as "a very lovely girl".
The bodies were removed just after four o'clock yesterday for a post-mortem examination by the State Pathologist, Dr John Harbison. Gardai also drove the Mercedes away from the scene. A brother of Mr Farrell arrived from London during the afternoon to identify his body formally.
Residents on the small crescentshaped road, dominated by the adjacent Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, told gardai they had not heard shots at the house. However, one source said that a neighbour was using a loud lawnmower during the afternoon, which might have drowned out the sound.