Three men have been arrested in connection with the investigation into the circumstances of the death of former Limerick councillor Mr Michael Kelly.
Mr Kelly was discovered with a gunshot wound to the head at his mother's house at Lilac Court, Southill, on May 14th last. He never regained consciousness and died a month later at the Mid-Western Regional Hospital in Limerick.
A team of detectives from the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation yesterday arrested three men in Limerick in connection with the events surrounding the shooting.
It is understood that all three - who are related - were arrested at two houses in the Southill area of the city shortly before 8.30 a.m. yesterday. They were being held for questioning at Henry Street Garda station in Limerick under Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act. They can be detained by gardaí for up to three days without charge.
A senior Garda source said the three men were being questioned about "possession of information" relating to the incident in which Mr Kelly suffered the gunshot wound to the head". These are the first arrests in the inquiry into the shooting eight weeks ago.
Mr Kelly's brother, Anthony, has always maintained that his elder brother was shot by someone who entered his mother's house at Lilac Court.
No weapon was ever found, however, and it is known that gardaí have also been investigating the possibility that Mr Kelly may have shot himself.
Limerick Chief Supt Jerry Kelly took the decision to call in detectives from the Dublin-based National Bureau of Criminal Investigation to head the inquiry following the apparent reluctance of members of the Kelly family to co-operate with previous Garda investigations.
Michael Kelly, who topped the poll in Limerick's Ward 3 in the 1999 local elections, had been staying at his mother's house in Southill following his release from prison. The former councillor had served a sentence for VAT and social welfare fraud.
Mr Kelly had 38 criminal convictions and had served a total of 12 years in prison for a variety of offences.