Murder stuns estate where ‘people don’t know their neighbours’

PRIM, trim lawns, cheerful shrubbery, people carriers and four-wheel drives — normally Oldcourt in Ballincollig bears all the hallmarks of modern, mundane life.

But this weekend, lurking behind the twitching curtains of semi-detacheds, was the nasty realisation that crime had propelled the blossoming Cork city suburb into unfamiliar and unwanted territory.

Neighbours of Eric Cummins, 29, gunned down in his driveway after returning from a night out with his partner and 18-month-old son on Saturday, were aghast to wake up to find their homes in the spotlight.