POLICE IN NORTHERN Ireland are continuing to question two men who have been arrested in relation to the murder of Catholic PSNI constable Ronan Kerr last Saturday.

A man, named as Brian Cannon, 26, and from the Dungannon area and an unidentified 40-year-old man are being detained at Antrim police station.

Both are being held in connection to the murder of Ronan Kerr who was killed when a bomb exploded under his car last Saturday.

They are also being held in connection with a significant arms discovery in Coalisland, Co Tyrone on Tuesday.

A spokesperson for the PSNI  told TheJournal.ie that the two men can be held for up to 72 hours but the police can apply for an extension.

The PSNI believe that the bomb, which contained up to half a kilo of high explosives, had been placed under Kerr’s Ford Mondeo car up to two hours before it exploded outside his home in Highfield Court.

The officer in charge of the investigation, Detective Superintendent Raymond Murray said:

This device had the potential to kill or maim anyone who happened to be in the area when Ronan got into his car.

In a related development, Gardaí in Dublin said they searched an apartment in the north of the city in connection with the murder at the request of the PSNI.

Members of the Special Detective Unit carried out the search. No arrests were made.