A round-up of today’s other stories in brief
Ballymoney dentist pleads guilty to sexually abusing three women
Ballymoney dentist Colin David Howell yesterday pleaded guilty to sexually abusing three women.
However, the 51-year-old dentist who, with his former lover Hazel Roberta Stewart, is separately also accused of the murders of their respective spouses in May 1991. He has denied 14 other charges of indecent assault involving a total of five women. The offences were allegedly committed over a decade between March 1998 and December 2008.
The case has been adjourned to be mentioned again on December 15th.
Protest at closure of Offaly fire stations
Hundreds of people took to the streets of Tullamore in Co Offaly yesterday to protest over the standing down of three of the counties eight fire stations.
Stations at Banagher and Daingean were stood down three weeks ago while Kilcormac's station was taken offline in April.
Offaly County Council has insisted the move is necessary due to manning, funding and health and safety constraints.
Inquiry into shooting of man 'very active'
A Garda investigation into the shooting of a 27-year-old man more than four years ago is "very active," an inquest heard yesterday.
Shay Martin Bradley (27) of North King Street, Dublin, was discovered in a car near Blackhorse Avenue in Cabra on March 10th, 2006.
Mr Bradley, who was originally from Derry died of gunshot wounds.
The coroner adjourned the inquest until a date in March 2011.
Double murder inquiry continues
Garda inquiries are continuing into the deaths of two men killed in a double homicide as they sat in a sports car in Dublin's inner city.
Michael "Roly" Cronin (35) of Hampton Wood Green, Finglas, Dublin, a drug trafficker, and James Maloney (26) of Braithwaite Street, Dublin, were shot in a car in Summerhill, Dublin, on January 7th, 2009, by a man who was sitting in the back seat.
Postmortems found both victims died of gunshot wounds to the head.
Both inquests were opened in February 2009.
Insp Gerry Donnelly of Fitzgibbon Street Garda station told coroner Dr Brian Farrell that inquiries are ongoing.
He applied for an adjournment of the two inquests at Dublin City Coroner's Court.
Coroner Dr Brian Farrell adjourned both inquests until a date in December.