One of the final letters written by Ms Lorraine Farrell (29) before she apparently shot her boyfriend and then herself was delivered yesterday to his wife, Ann. It was one of three letters she gave to a friend to post last Wednesday just hours before the couple were found with fatal gunshot wounds in Ms Farrell's home in Drogheda. Two of the letters were sent to addresses in Newry, the third went overseas, possibly to Britain.
Meanwhile, gardai hope that forensic tests on the car bomb which failed to explode in Drogheda last Friday will clarify whether it was the work of criminal associates of the dead man, Patrick Farrell. It had been left on a crowded street in the town centre adjacent to a taxi company run by Lorraine Farrell's family.
The Loyalist Volunteer Front claimed responsibility for it a number of hours after it had partly exploded. But gardai are sceptical about the claim, believing it could have been an opportunistic move by the LVF.
However, there is no doubt that the bomb was intended to cause serious damage. A Garda source said "it would have killed, it was meant to go off . . . it wasn't a joke". It consisted of a pipe-bomb and drums of petrol which partly ignited causing an explosion which shattered the car's back window and blew off the bumper.
There are unconfirmed reports that a number of shots were fired over Patrick Farrell's home in Newry at the weekend. There is concern about further retaliation attacks in Drogheda on the family of the dead woman. Gardai in the town have security measures under constant review.