Gardaí seek to extradite man over murder bid

GARDAÍ are seeking to extradite a man from Britain over an attempted murder which left the victim severely incapacitated.

Detectives investigating the vicious knife attack on a youth in Finglas, north Dublin, want to bring charges against the suspect.

Daniel O’Hare, 22, was stabbed in the neck in a violent assault near his home on Barry Avenue, Finglas west, on July 19, 2003.

He suffered a heart attack after a key blood vessel in his neck was severed in the assault. He was initially kept alive on a life-support machine in James Connolly Memorial Hospital in Blanchardstown.

He was subsequently taken off life-support and has attended rehabilitation programmes. However, he remains severely incapacitated after the attack, which is being treated as attempted murder.

Mr O’Hare’s unnamed assailant, in his early 20s, is from the same area in Finglas west and fled to Britain shortly after the attack.

He is believed to have carried out another offence there and is currently serving out his sentence. Gardaí have tracked him down and are trying to extradite him.

“We are actively seeking a suspect in relation to the attack. He is a local lad who fled to England. We are in the process of seeking an extradition warrant,” said a garda source.

The stabbing is part of a feud between two families in the area.

There is no connection with wider criminal or drug-related activities.

Mr O’Hare is one of two local men who have been left severely incapacitated after attacks in Finglas.

Michael O’Higgins, in his 30s, was severely beaten on Plunkett Crescent earlier in the year. A man has since been charged in connection with the incident.

Earlier this month, an alleged drug dealer was attacked with swords and hatchets at a post office in Finglas, after he was suspected of selling drugs to a 12-year-old who almost died from an overdose.

The man’s hand was almost hacked off in the attack, which was carried out by members of the child’s extended family.

The victim was leaving the post office on Cardiffsbridge Road at 3 August when five men chased him back into the premises.