Murder victim was not significant player, say gardaí

GARDAÍ are still trying to establish a motive for the gangland-style shooting of a man in Dublin.

David McGuinness, 35, was gunned down as he answered the door to his family home on the quiet Balrothery estate in Tallaght, on the west side of the city.

Detectives are investigating possible motives behind the fatal shooting, which occurred at 12.20am yesterday.

“It is wide open at the moment. He was known to us, but not in any serious way. He was not a significant player in any criminal field,” said a garda source.

He said gardaí would investigate any alleged drug connections or other possible criminal links, as well as any domestic factors.

He said there was no initial reason to support reports from other sources yesterday that there could be a connection with the murder of doorman Ronnie Draper last month.

Gardaí are investigating whether the shooting of Draper was the result of a feud between the INLA and a south Dublin criminal gang.

Mr McGuinness, who had a teenage daughter, had only recently moved in to what was originally his parents’ house. His brother, a taxi-driver, now lives there.

Describing the murder, a garda spokesman said: “A man called to the front door of a house and asked for the victim who was shot when he came out.”

It is understood the victim, a construction worker, was shot several times with a handgun.

The spokesman added: “A number of men were seen running away from the scene towards two parked cars which were then driven away at speed.”

The first car was described as a Ford Focus or similar vehicle; the second was described as a small hatchback car, dark in colour.

The spokesman said: “A full murder investigation has commenced and an incident room has been opened at

Tallaght Garda Station: telephone number [phone].”

It is understood that none of the attackers was masked.

Local Sinn Féin councillor Mark Daly said the fact that the shooting occurred in Balrothery, a private estate, underlined the prevalence of a serious crime.

“Balrothery is a quiet, nice neighbourhood. It’s no good residents having to wake up to find garda cars at the scene of a horrific shooting.

“It’s not the type of society you want kids to come into. But people are active throughout the area.

“It shows that the scourge of organised crime, including drugs, is something we have to be very concerned about,” he said.

He said the use of a handgun by the assailants highlighted the availability of firearms in the city and beyond.

Mr McGuinness’s murder brings to eight the number of fatal gangland shootings in Dublin so far this year - two more than the whole of 2002 in the capital.