A night-club security man shot dead in Limerick early yesterday may have been the victim of a drugs gang he thwarted.
Gardaí are investigating the possibility that Mr Brian Fitzgerald (34) was murdered because he prevented drug-pushers from operating in the club where he was head of security.
A married father of two young children, Mr Fitzgerald was gunned down as he arrived home from work at 3.50 a.m.
It is thought he ran to try and escape his attackers, but neighbours woken by the shots found him dead in the driveway of a house several doors from his home in Brookhaven Walk, off Mill Road, Corbally.
It is also believed that shots were fired at his house on a previous occasion last year.
As a murder inquiry began, the garda heading the investigation descibed the shooting as "a most callous incident". Supt Willie Keane added: "This man was returning from a night's work and was brutally killed."
The owner of Doc's Bar and Restaurant, which also incorporates the night-club where Mr Fitzgerald worked, said staff were "devastated" by the news.
"Brian was a brilliant family man who was only doing his duty," he said.
Gardaí confirmed yesterday that one of their lines of inquiry was that the security man had been the victim of a gang frustrated by his attentions at the club.
It is believed there were two attackers, one wearing a motorcycle helmet, and that four shots were fired.
A partly burned motorcycle was found afterwards in the Dublin Road area of Limerick.
Mr Fitzgerald was pronounced dead at the scene after neighbours ran outside and alerted gardaí and emergency services.
The State Pathologist, Dr John Harbison, arrived in Limerick yesterday and was conducting a post-mortem last night at the Midwestern Regional Hospital.
Gardaí have appealed for information from anyone who was in the Mill Road area of the city between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. yesterday.
This was the sixth murder in Limerick Garda Division this year and the second involving a gun. Supt Keane said the Garda had been attempting to crack down on the illegal use of firearms.
"A lot of firearms have been located in the past 18 months, including high-powered arms," he said.
The dead man is survived by his wife Alice and sons Aron (6) and Evan (1).