Updated at 9.05pm
GARDAÍ HAVE ISSUED a renewed appeal for information from the public regarding the shooting last night of Eddie Hutch Snr at 31 Poplar Row on Dublin’s northside.
The main information contained in the new appeal pertains to the vehicle used by the perpetrators after they had dumped their initial escape vehicle at St Patrick’s Parade in nearby Drumcondra.
Speaking at Store Street Garda Station this evening Assistant Commissioner Jack Nolan said that it is believed that after the initial escape vehicle (a silver 3 Series BMW) was dumped at that location, the four men involved in the shooting got into either a dark coloured Isuzu 4×4 or a Toyota Landcruiser and drove onto Lindsay Road in the direction of Glasnevin.
The BMW used in the initial escape is not a stolen vehicle, and this is another avenue of investigation according to Nolan. It is believed that it was abandoned because of the quick response of gardaí who were on the scene of the shooting within two minutes.
A small black car, possibly a Peugeot or a Renault, was also seen in the area of Poplar Row at the time of the shooting.
Nolan further added that of the four men present during the killing, two men fired shots from handguns. Eddie Hutch’s partner was present in the house at the time.
“The gardaí had no specific intelligence that Mr Hutch was at risk,” Nolan said.
He further appealed for anyone who may have sold fuel in a drinks type bottle (with a view to setting fire to a car) to contact the incident room at Mountjoy Garda Station on 01-666 8600, the Garda Confidential Line 1 800 666 111 or any Garda Station
Earlier
Earlier, the Garda Commissioner said members of her force cannot go to every single event in Dublin “just because criminals may be there”.
Speaking at a briefing this evening about the escalating feud between the Kinahan and Hutch gangs in Dublin, Nóirín O’Sullivan told reporters that gardaí are working with other international police organisations, including Spanish police, on an ongoing basis.
She said nothing was being ruled out of the investigation and theories of organised crime and terrorism are being examined.
Earlier, the Justice Minister promised that gardaí will be provided with every resource required to put an end to the gangland feud that has seen two men shot dead in four days.
The shooting of Hutch, brother of Gerry “The Monk” Hutch is believed to have been in retaliation for the killing of David Byrne in the Regency Hotel on Friday.
Eddie Hutch Senior, who was aged in his 50s, was shot dead at his home on Poplar Row in the North Strand area of Dublin’s northside, near Fairview, yesterday evening.
Four gunmen burst into his home and shot him up to six times before fleeing in a getaway car.
The minister told reporters she has now agreed with the Commissioner that a permanent armed response unit will be established in the Dublin area, separate from the Emergency Response Unit.
Temporary armed measures have been put in place for now and the intention is to make this a permanent initiative. The new unit will comprise 55 gardaí in total, the minister said.
Multiple rolling checkpoints and patrols will also be in place as gardaí try to prevent further deaths. This new package of measures will be supported by an initial allocation of an additional €5 million for the garda budget.
Speaking to reporters after her meeting with O’Sullivan and her senior staff, Frances Fitzgerald said she wanted to make it clear that “we will stand down this threat”.
When asked why gardaí had not been present in the area at the time of the shooting, the minister said there had been armed controls all over the city but that “these gangs are behaving in a ruthless manner”.
She did concede that a lack of investment in the force during the recession had impacted on policing.
Like every public service the numbers were reduced, Templemore was closed, investment stopped – there are consequences to that. There are consequences to the sort of economic collapse that we’ve seen.
Tit-for-tat
Gardaí believe last night’s shooting may just be the beginning of a deadly tit-for-tat feud.
Garda sources have told TheJournal.ie that the shooting could spark the beginning of a “war” the likes of which “haven’t been seen before” between the Kinahan and Hutch gangs.
It is understood that the gunmen arrived at the scene in a Silver 3 Series BMW which was found abandoned on St Patricks Parade, Drumcondra a short time later.
Investigating gardaí are appealing to anyone who may have seen this car or anyone with information to contact the incident room at Mountjoy Garda Station on 01 666 8600, the Garda Confidential Line 1-800-666-111 or any Garda Station. They are due to give an update on the investigation in a briefing this evening.
Archbishop statement
The attack has been widely condemned by politicians and local community figures today.
Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin has once again condemned “the extraordinary examples of violence which have marked our city again in recent days”.
In a statement this morning he said violence “is to be condemned whatever its roots are”.
“Dismembering bodies as some sort of warning is not sign of prestige or power but of despicable inhumanity.
Premeditated shooting in public places even in the presence of terrified children and innocent bystanders only degrades the humanity of those who do it. They fail to see that such inhumanity inevitably rebounds on its own perpetrators and never leaves them with the security they seek.
He added:
“Is there anyone – even among their own ranks – who can speak to these cynical hearts?
“Are there some persons of wisdom – especially mothers and grandmothers who must fear that their children will be dragged even more deeply into this spiral – who see the madness of such violence and who can appeal to whatever humanity remains in the hearts of those involved?
Every victim is some mother’s son and someone’s loved one and is tragically mourned by a family.
Former Dublin lord mayor Christy Burke, who was at the scene last night, said this morning there was an atmosphere of ”numb and fear” in the aftermath of the shooting.
He said the community will stand up again but for the families there is only “misery, pain, sorrow and sadness”.
Speaking on Today with Sean O’Rourke, Burke suggested the Archbishop could act as a mediator in the gangland war.
The idea was put to Martin himself on the same programme later, with the Archbishop responding:
I will follow any advice that the Garda Síochána would give. I wouldn’t in any way carry out a parallel initiative. The Garda Síochána have the responsibility. They have also their own contacts.
Conflicting claims
Meanwhile there are conflicting claims regarding the involvement of the Continuity IRA in Friday’s Regency shooting.
In a statement to the BBC yesterday, a man claiming to speak on behalf of the dissident republican organisation said its members were responsible for the killing of Byrne, a known associate of the Kinahan crime gang.
However, in a later statement a spokesman for the paramilitary group said they “did not have any involvement in Friday’s shooting”.
With reporting from Michelle Hennessy, Daragh Brophy, and Cianan Brennan
Originally published 9.39am
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