Gardaí were yesterday studying a list of potential suspects for the murder of a 39-year-old man in Sligo town early on Saturday.
David Lynch was shot by a lone gunman shortly after midnight on Friday as he stepped from a van in Collery Drive on the edge of the Cranmore estate.
Two others, including a 12-year-old boy, were injured in the shooting. The boy was being treated in hospital yesterday.
Lynch, a father of three, had a number of convictions for violent offences and had a growing list of enemies, according to detectives.
He spent a number of terms in jail, including an eight-year sentence for two armed bank robberies with his uncle, Frank Ward (54), who was described as a career criminal by the judge who sentenced Ward to life for a shooting in which he injured popular Dublin publican Charlie Chawke three years ago.
Gardaí believe Lynch's killer deliberately struck when he was at his most vulnerable following the jailing last month of his two younger brothers, John and Neil, for a number of assaults, including one on their sister's boyfriend because they disapproved of the relationship.
Judge Miriam Reynolds, who sentenced them at Sligo Circuit Court, said they showed a complete disregard for law and order.
One senior detective said Lynch had upset quite a number of people "who would have no qualms about using guns to settle a score". The murder, the first of 2008, was carried out by a man in dark clothing who fired a number of shots. He may have been masked and is believed to have escaped on foot.
The 12-year-old boy who was shot was a neighbour of Lynch and a friend of his son. He was taken to Sligo General Hospital where he was treated for a bullet wound in a thigh and for shock. His injuries were not lifethreatening and his condition was described yesterday as stable.
Another man, the 44-year-old driver of the van from which all three were alighting when fired on, was slightly hurt but was not taken to hospital. Lynch was pronounced dead shortly after his arrival in hospital.
The three were returning from a hunting trip in which they were "lamping" rabbits when the attack happened.
Gardaí were checking whether the shooting was linked to two other murders in the same area in the past two years.
Sam Smith (23) was shot when he answered the door at his sister's home in Cranmore in December 2005. He died 24 hours later on New Year's Eve. An associate of Lynch is the chief suspect but gardaí do not believe Lynch himself was connected to it.
Last August, Tom Ward, also 23, died in hospital after he was attacked with a hatchet outside his parents' home in Cranmore. Gardaí believe his death was sparked by a feud between a number of families. The 44-year-old man slightly injured in the attack which claimed Lynch's life is a relative of Ward.
Chief Supt Kieran Kenny, who is leading the investigation into Lynch's murder, said gardaí were alerted to the shooting by a phone call at 12.10am on Saturday. They were at the scene within minutes and sealed it off for forensic examination.
He said there was no evidence to suggest a link with the other two murders but confirmed gardaí would re-examine them as part of their investigation.
He appealed for anybody who was in the area of the shooting between midnight on Friday and 1 am on Saturday to contact gardaí.
One of the first people at the scene was former Sligo mayor Jimmy Cummins, who lives about 100 metres away on Cleveragh Road. "I was in my house watching TV when I heard a number of shots," he said. "At first I thought it was somebody setting off fireworks as part of the continuing Christmas celebrations. Sadly, that wasn't the case. Although I was 100 metres away I could hear the screams. I went up and already a small crowd had gathered. I saw one man lying on the road. He appeared to be alive."
Mayor of Sligo Jonathan McGoldrick said: "It's a shocking tragedy. Three violent murders in such a short space of time in the same area is truly shocking. It's terrible for the people of the area."
Lynch is to be buried after a funeral Mass in St Joseph's Church, Ballytivnan, Sligo, tomorrow or Wednesday.