Philadelphia police are looking for three men in connection with the killing of a Belfast barman last week.
The city's homicide division confirmed that it would like to locate three men who disappeared shortly after 60-year-old Séamus O'Neill's body was found at McWhitey's bar in the Port Richmond section of the city.
One officer, who asked not to be named, said police are expecting to make arrests shortly and are following a "very definite" line of inquiry.
Mr O'Neill's wife and his brother found his body in the basement of the bar on Friday after he disappeared on Wednesday. He was last seen on his way to meet a friend at a nearby cafe called Cheers.
Ms O'Neill discovered the body after finding his car across the road from the bar. A member of staff in McWhitey's invited her to look for him in the bar.
Cindy Keough, who works at a bar named My Blue Heaven where Mr O'Neill worked, said she was also told by detectives that they are seeking three men.
"It's an ongoing investigation, so they aren't telling us a huge amount. We're just waiting for an official announcement," she said.
Ms Keough said Mr O'Neill had won a small amount of money recently on a locally organised "street lottery" but said the sum was not as high as the $40,000 that some in the Philadelphia media had claimed.
She said the lottery win had led to speculation that there had been an argument about money in McWhitey's, but she said she had not heard anything definite about the motive for the killing.
She said she and Mr O'Neill's brother, Billy, were both stunned by the killing of an easy-going and good natured man. Ms Keough said the killing was particularly difficult for Billy who is recovering from recent surgery.
Police say Mr O'Neill was beaten to death before his body was wrapped in tarpaulin and placed in the basement of the bar.
McWhitey's has been closed since the body was found.