Bombings and beatings as gangs escalate warfare over drugs

THREE buggies are piled up in the front yard, fighting for space with two toddler bikes.

A young boy’s bike lies unlocked against the railing of the house.

All obvious signs of a large family, of babies, children and parents.

Yet, this was the target of the latest bomb attack in Dublin.

Ten people were inside the two-story house in Summerhill, in the north inner city, at the time of the attack on Wednesday night.

Most of them were watching the Champions League final on television when the explosion rocked the house.

A hand grenade had been thrown from outside the rear of the house landing on the balcony. The explosion caused damage to the balcony area, the rear patio doors and the kitchen.

Luckily, nobody was injured. Gardaí said no babies or children were in the house at the time. It is not known if the attacker knew this or not.

Army bomb disposal experts said the outcome could have been a lot worse: “It didn’t go indoors thankfully, because if it did, there were people in the house and it could have caused very serious damage, death or injuries.”

Detectives suspect the attack is linked with a local feud, mainly on the basis of the people targeted.

This feud, which stems from a personal row with a local drugs dealer, has already claimed the life of a young man.

Paul Kelly, 26, was shot dead near the doorway of his sister’s apartment in Clontarf in north Dublin last April.

Mr Kelly, from Gardiner Street in the north inner city, was known as a dangerous criminal in his home area, dealing drugs and beating people who owed him money.

Gardaí suspect he may have been killed on the orders of a local dealer, who is on bail for serious drug trafficking offences.

This man, aged in his 20s, is also from the Summerhill area.

There were reports locally that Mr Kelly was blamed for shots fired into the dealer’s home.

A baby was thought to have been in the room at the time.

There were also reports Mr Kelly had stabbed an associate of the dealer in a local shop.

The dealer is facing charges in relation to the seizure of €2 million worth of cocaine in north Dublin last year.

Wednesday’s bomb attack is the second in Dublin this week.

On Sunday, a pipe bomb exploded under a car in Ratoath Drive in Finglas, north Dublin.

Detectives suspect it may be linked to one of two feuds, one in nearby Ballymun or a violent feud in the north inner city, which has already claimed two lives.

A leading gang member in the latter feud, Christy Griffin, was jailed for life last month for a rape, the original cause of the feud. Hand grenades have also been used in that row.