THERE WAS only one talking point on Main Street in Buncrana yesterday as shocked locals tried to take in the overnight events that have once again cast a dark shadow over the area.
The brutal murder of father-of-two Andrew Allen (24) at his home shortly after 9pm on Thursday reminded many of the dark days of the Troubles.
The busy Co Donegal town, on the rugged Inishowen Peninsula, has had more than its share of tragedy over the years. The continuation of the peace process had given hope of a future without the problems suffered by many Border towns during the Troubles.
In recent months another house in Buncrana was shot at twice, while a pipe bomb was thrown at a house in the nearby village of Muff.
It is the clinical nature of Mr Allen’s brutal murder that reminds people here that remnants of the past remain.
Politicians, church leaders and members of the public have all condemned the killing at Mr Allen’s home at Links View, Lisfannon.
Many have been quick to lay the blame at the door of Republican Action Against Drugs – a self-styled vigilante group who reportedly put Mr Allen and several other men out of Derry last year.
Buncrana parish priest Fr John Walsh said ordinary people were furious at what had happened, and said the taking of a life could never be justified. “There’s contempt for the people who have perpetrated this crime,” he said.
“There’s a cold fury that a young man, no matter what his background, should have been gunned to death in our community. We have our own forces of law and order in this town. People do not want this.”
Gardaí were still at Mr Allen’s detached house yesterday carrying out a forensic investigation in and around the property.
Neighbour Nat Black said he was shocked by the events of the previous hours.
“That’s the only way I feel. To think that a young man was killed in cold blood is just shocking. I’m still finding it hard to take it all in,” he said.
Another cleric, Fr Michael Canny, who is parish priest in the Waterside area of Derry where the victim was originally from, described the murder as “senseless”.
“What has happened has brought devastation to his family and friends. Here we find people who are the judge, jurors and executioners – there’s no room for this in a civilised society,” he said.
Local Sinn Féin TD Pádraig Mac Lochlainn revealed how Mr Allen had tried to integrate himself within the local community.
“He had become involved in the local boxing club and was beginning to call Buncrana his home.
“This is a lovely part of Buncrana – a very peaceful area, close to the sea and the golf course. But that peace was shattered when these men came and took Andrew Allen’s life from him.
“Nobody has the right to take someone’s life from them, and these men will have to live with their own conscience,” he said.