The man murdered in a gun attack in west Dublin early yesterday was a suspect in a number of serious gun crimes committed in the last fortnight.
The killing of Paul Cunningham (23), Dromheath Avenue, Mulhuddart, comes after a week of tension between west Dublin feuding factions, which has resulted in a number of shootings leaving one man seriously ill in hospital.
Senior gardaí in Finglas and Blanchardstown are now fearful the run up to Christmas will be marked by more bloodshed.
They have already begun Operation Crossover II, which is aimed at targeting about 12 leading gangland figures, and their associates, in west Dublin. The operation involves local gardaí and armed members of the Emergency Response Unit patrolling suburban streets and erecting roaming checkpoints.
Senior gardaí last night said the operation was under constant review and that resources would now be channelled into any areas likely to be the scene of further tit-for-tat shootings arising from yesterday's murder.
Cunningham was in bed with his partner at his mother's home at about 3 a.m. yesterday morning when two men broke into the house via the rear and made their way up the stairs.
They burst into the victim's bedroom and shot him at least twice with a shotgun as he lay in bed. Cunningham's 18-month-old baby son was also sleeping in the room at the time but neither he nor his mother was injured.
Cunningham was taken by ambulance to James Connolly Memorial Hospital, Blanchardstown, but was pronounced dead a short time later. The scene of the murder was sealed off and examined by Garda technical experts.
Gardaí said two men were seen near the murder scene after the attack. One was described as 5 ft 9 in, while his accomplice was slightly smaller and of heavier build. Gardaí were still unsure last night if the attackers escaped in a vehicle.
Gardaí believe Cunningham was one of two men who, last Thursday week, tried to rob the TSB in Sutton Cross, Dublin. One of the raiders, Finglas-man Declan Curran (24), was arrested at the scene and was remanded in custody to Cloverhill Prison, but died there last Sunday morning of suspected natural causes. The other man, whom gardaí believe was Cunningham, escaped.
Within hours of Curran's death last Sunday, his accomplices attacked two houses in Finglas.
They shot at the family home of a man murdered by Curran last year. They also shot at the home of a man whose family they believe was involved in a gun attack on Curran about five years ago during which he lost a kidney. The victim of that attack was wounded in the upper body and remains seriously ill.
Gardaí believe Cunningham was one of a number of men involved in both incidents. Detectives are working on the theory that Cunningham's murder was a revenge killing linked to those attacks. Other links to his underworld activities are also being explored.
Cunningham was well known to gardaí and had links with the notorious Blanchardstown-based Westies gang. He had about 20 previous convictions. He was involved in drug-dealing, armed robbery and theft. He was also facing firearms offences at the time of his death.
About six months ago, he was chased on foot to the family home by members of the local Garda drug unit, who suspected he was in possession of firearms or drugs.
Cunningham ran into his mother's house but a short time later gardaí found a shotgun on the roof of a neighbour's shed. He was charged in connection with the find. He was also due to be sentenced before the end of the year for receiving stolen motorbikes.
Cunningham was a from a family of eight siblings. He is the third member of the family to have died in violent circumstances. In 1995 his brother Gary (16), was one of three boys killed at Ratoath, Co Meath, when the stolen car they were in went out of control, hit a tree and burst into flames. Another brother, Paul (19), was stabbed to death in 2000.
Their mother, Ms Joan Cunningham, and her family escaped eviction for arrears from their local authority house in Mulhuddart in March 1996 when the broadcaster Joe Duffy, then working as a radio reporter on The Gay Byrne Show, challenged sheriffs as they were about to evict the family.
An appeal was launched through the radio show and almost £8,000 was raised, enabling the family to remain on.
