Garda chief in pledge after brothers shot dead

Garda Commissioner Fachtna Murphy tonight vowed to do everything in his power to bring to justice masked men who shot dead two brothers.

Paul and Kenneth Corbally were gunned down as they sat with a 14-year-old boy in their Lexus car in Neilstown, west Dublin yesterday evening.

The pair, aged 32 and 35 and originally from the Ballyfermot area of the city, were under investigation for serious crime in the capital.

Commissioner Murphy pledged to commit full resources to catching the culprits, whose silver Audi car was later found burnt out nearby.

“Last night a father and mother lost two sons, partners lost partners, children lost fathers,” he said.

“This type of criminal activity cannot be tolerated in our society and will not be tolerated by An Garda Siochána.

“I wish to assure the people in this country that we will deal with this head-on and bring the people responsible to justice.”

The brothers and the teenager are thought to have been parked in the executive-style car on Neilstown Road for some time when the other vehicle approached at about 8pm.

The two men were shot several times in the head and body.

The 14-year-old boy, from the nearby Moorfield estate, also sustained gunshot wounds but fled the scene and found help.

He is being treated under armed Garda protection at Tallaght Hospital for his injuries, which are not life-threatening.

The youngster – both a victim and a witness to the crime – has spoken to gardaí, who plan to talk to him in more detail as he recovers to establish why he was in the gangsters’ car.

The double killing brings to 14 the number of gun murders in the country this year.

Commissioner Murphy – who served as an inspector at the local Ronanstown garda station 20 years ago – said he appreciated people would be fearful in the wake of the killings.

“We’re making the arrests, we’re making the seizures from drugs, we’re bringing people to court, but there are a small core of people intent on settling scores by taking the lives of their enemies,” he said.

“We will be bringing every aspect of the legislation of the gangland crime, the surveillance, and all other aspects of the criminal law we can bring to bear to ensure that as far as possible we will be successful.”

Detectives believe at least two men were in the Audi A6 vehicle which was fitted with bogus taxi plates on the roof and false registration plates. It was found burnt out in the Foxborough area of Lucan.

Detectives are still following several lines of inquiry to establish the motive for the double murder, including a pub row which left a man dead, a drugs feud in Ballyfermot and a gangland killing in March 2008.

They have appealed for anyone who may have seen the car between 5pm and 8pm from Clondalkin village up to Neilstown and after the attack on the Fonthill Road and in Foxborough.

Justice Minister Dermot Ahern insisted authorities were doing all they could to find those responsible.

“The murders in west Dublin on Monday night reveal the sheer disregard for human life and the families and loved ones of those callously gunned down,” he said.

“The fact that a young teenager was lucky to escape with his life illustrates the scourge of gang crime but it will also redouble the efforts of the gardaí in pursuing the killers.”

But Fine Gael justice spokesman Charlie Flanagan said communities continued to be terrorised by gangsters and accused the Government of not acting on its responsibilities.

“Urgent gangland legislation was rushed through the Dáil last year to make gang membership an offence, with Fine Gael’s full support,” he said.

“But it’s not being enforced under Justice Minister Dermot Ahern, and there hasn’t been a single conviction.

“In spite of his grand words and gestures, Minister Ahern is not making any impact against gangland.”

Detectives have appealed for anyone who was in the area at the time and may have witnessed anything suspicious to contact detectives at Ronanstown garda station.