Man guilty of murdering Dubliner after feud

A 31-YEAR-OLD Dublin man has been found guilty of murdering a man almost four-and-a-half years ago after a feud.

Paul Kelly, 26, of O’Brien Hall, died shortly after he was shot several times on the night of April 6, 2007.

Michael Taylor, aged 31, of Summerhill, had pleaded not guilty to his murder at Winston Ville apartments on Charlemont Road, Clontarf, where Mr Kelly had been staying.

Several residents of the Charlemont Road area gave evidence during the 10-day trial. They said they heard gunfire and saw two armed men in balaclavas and gloves fleeing the scene at about 11.45pm.

The victim was discovered with multiple gunshot wounds in the lobby of the apartment building.

An X-ray of Mr Taylor’s body showed multiple shotgun pellets in his head along with several bullets in his torso.

The Central Criminal Court heard that there had been a feud between both men and their families, which the prosecution said amounted to motive.

A glove found along the killers’ getaway route had DNA matching the defendant’s as well as a small amount of DNA from an unknown person.

Mr Justice Barry White told the jury that while the various strands of evidence were circumstantial, together they could be sufficient to convict him.

The nine men and three women of the jury deliberated for five hours and 21 minutes before reaching a majority verdict of 10 to two.

Several female members of the Kelly family left the courtroom in tears after the verdict was read out, while Taylor shook his head.

Mr Justice White adjourned imposing the mandatory life sentence until the end of the month to give the victim’s family time to prepare a victim impact statement.