Man carried on car bonnet before being stabbed 10 times

GARDAÍ are trying to establish a motive for an attack in which a man was lifted onto the bonnet of a car, driven down a road then stabbed 10 times in the legs and shoulders.

The man, in his 20s, was recovering in hospital following the attack, which happened in broad daylight on a busy street in Limerick. Detectives have spoken to the man but have been unable to find out why he was targeted.

The victim was walking along a street close to the Dublin Road around 1.30pm on Monday when his attackers drove at him. He was propelled onto the bonnet and remained there as the car was driven further down the road.

At that point, one of the passengers jumped out and began stabbing at his legs and shoulders. The attacker, a male, then jumped back in to the car and it was driven off. The man's injuries are not life-threatening but he remains in the city's St John's Hospital. Gardaí in Henry Street are appealing for witnesses.

In Dublin, gardaí identified a man found dead in the street last week. The man, who was homeless, is believed to have died from natural causes.

His name has not been released. The man, believed to be in his early 30s, was identified after a description of his distinctive appearance he was 6ft 5in in height, 20 stone and tattooed was publicly circulated.

A post-mortem is to be carried out to establish the cause of death but gardaí do not believe it was suspicious.

Meanwhile, a man who suffered a heart attack in a row outside a pub in the early hours of Monday morning is still in critical condition in Dublin's Beaumont Hospital.

Gardaí last night said they are treating the incident, which happened outside a pub in Kilbarrack, north Dublin, as an assault, though no arrests have been made.