Stabbing suspect arrested at border

The prime suspect in the stabbing of the son of publican Frank Shortt has been captured at a border checkpoint, gardaí revealed today.

The prime suspect in the stabbing of the son of framed publican Frank Shortt has been captured at a border checkpoint, gardaí revealed today.

The 35-year-old man, from Dublin, fled the flat where Kristian Shortt was found, bloodied and unconscious, in Donegal early yesterday morning.

The victim is fighting for his life at St Vincent’s Hospital in Dublin where his condition is described as critical but stable.

Gardai were called to the flat, on Upper Main Street in Letterkenny, at around 6.45am yesterday.

Mr Shortt had been stabbed a number of times and a 34-year-old man, who is renting the flat, was arrested at the scene.

This man, also from Dublin, has been living in the town for two years and is known to gardai. There was an outstanding warrant for his arrest on a separate assault charge.

He was taken to Milford garda station, where he was detained under section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act before being released last night.

It is understood that he telephoned the ambulance.

Another man who was in the flat during the attack fled into Northern Ireland on his way further south into the Republic.

The man, who gardaí believe carried out the stabbing, was tracked down at a checkpoint near the border, outside Emyvale, Co Monaghan, at around midnight.

The suspect, also known to gardai for drugs-related offences, is being questioned at Monaghan garda station where he is being held under section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act.

Mr Shortt was originally taken to Letterkenny General Hospital before being transferred to St Vincent’s with critical stab wounds.

His father, Frank, spent three years in prison after being wrongly convicted of allowing drugs to be sold in his Point Inn nightclub at Quigley’s Point, in Inishowen, Co Donegal.

He was awarded €4.7m euro compensation from the State for being framed by corrupt gardaí.