GARDAÍ INVESTIGATING THE killing of a 25-year-old convicted criminal will be out on the streets of Cabra today as they launch a fresh appeal for information on the murder.
Paul Cullen was shot several times at the Cabra House just after 7pm on Sunday 3 March as he sat drinking with family members – including his disabled father, who is confined to a wheelchair. It’s believed the attack was ordered by some of his former associates, as a result of a long-standing drugs debt.
Paramedics performed CPR and tried to resuscitate Cullen at the scene, but he was pronounced dead a short time later.
Gardaí believe the gunman – who was dressed in dark clothing – escaped on the back of a motorbike driven by another man.
Investigators are particularly keen to speak anyone who may have witnessed a dark coloured, medium-sized motorcycle being driven in the area around the time of the shooting. Speaking to TheJournal.ie, Detective Inspector Colm Murphy – who is heading up the investigation - said it may have been seen driving erratically near Faussaugh Avenue before or after the attack. He added:
We are certainly anxious to find this motorcycle, which left the area at speed in the direction of Finglas. Our appeal is for anyone who may have seen it on the night or subsequently found a motorcycle abandoned or burnt-out to contact gardaí.
Murphy said his team had already received a great deal of assistance from the public and that a number of leads were being followed up. He said that at this stage, everyone who was in the pub at the time had been identified and interviewed, and that “assistance has been received from the patrons too”. He said the investigation was still being pursued intensively:
Irrespective of a person’s background or the type of shooting, people have to remember – this man was sitting in the pub with his father who was wheelchair-bound.
As part of a ‘Crimestoppers’ appeal, gardaí will operate a checkpoint on Fassaugh Avenue today, handing out leaflets appealing for information. Murphy said he was hopeful the renewed appeal would be useful and help jog people’s memories.
The Irish Crimestoppers Trust was set up in 1998 to provide a confidential way for people to report crime. The service can be contacted via freephone on 1800 25 00 25.
The number is manned by specially trained gardaí – and a cash reward is paid in certain cases, at the discretion of the force.
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