Mother-of-eight hopes feud is over

KATHLEEN KENNY hopes this is the end of the feud.

At least one of her children could have been shot yesterday. That didn’t happen thanks to the heroic actions of an unarmed garda.

Already two of her sons have been stabbed. A third was shot last year and suffered a heart attack afterwards.

The mother-of-eight said her daughters, including one who is six month’s pregnant, have been repeatedly assaulted.

When shots were fired into the front room of her house in Crumlin, in south west Dublin early yesterday morning, the mother-of-eight was sitting inside having a cup of tea. Her two grandchildren, aged six and 12, were upstairs.

“I hope this is the end of it,” said Kathleen yesterday. “It’s been terrible since last October when one of my sons was shot.”

She was speaking after two men were arrested yesterday.

“This feud has been going on two years, when two of my sons were stabbed.

“Our windows have been shot in; the car windows have been smashed and the tyres slashed.

“My daughters have been assaulted. One of my daughters who’s six months pregnant was punched in the face. Three of my daughters were nearly run over by a jeep driving at 60 miles an hour.”

She says the dispute was with another family in the area.

Kathleen said yesterday’s drama started at 5.45am.

“I heard a big bang. It was a shot through the front window.”

She rang the gardaí who arrived within five minutes and posted two gardaí outside the house. Two hours later, a car came back and drove around suspiciously before pulling in just past Kathleen’s house.

Kathleen said one of her sons, Ian, aged 21, ran out with a full bottle of Budweiser he was drinking to confront the passengers.

Her daughter Lindsey, 17, who is going to her debs tonight, ran out after him to pull him back.