Gardaí is investigating whether a 28-year-old man who was shot dead in an apartment in north Dublin was targeted for his involvement in street-level crack cocaine trafficking.
murder investigation has been launched after the discovery of Sean McCarthy’s body in an apartment in Drumcondra on Saturday night.
Mr McCarthy has been missing from his home in Poppintree since last Tuesday.
He is known to have suffered a number of fatal gunshot wounds at a property where Gardaí said the attack took place. Gardaí have identified a suspect.
He was arrested Saturday night and was still detained at Clontarf Garda station last night, where he could be held for seven days.
Senior sources said the victim was “a low-to-medium figure” in a drug-dealing operation in the Ballymun area of the city, where crack cocaine and other hard drugs are distributed at street level.
“The victim was someone who owed money to senior dealers, but also acted as a nuisance for a gang related to debt collection, according to information obtained by Gardaí,” a senior source said last night. “His involvement in this type of activity is considered a strong line of inquiry in this case,” the source added.
Last night, Gardaí declined to confirm whether an “item” discovered yesterday morning by Garda divers in the Tolka River between two walkways was the gun used in the murder.
Gardaí had been looking for Mr McCarthy since last Tuesday, including a detailed search of the Royal Canal at Phibsborough on Friday, involving the Garda sub-aqua unit and the deployment of the Garda helicopter.
It is clear that Mr McCarthy has visited the area in recent times. “The reality of this tragic case is that Gardaí was always searching for a body for several days because of the intelligence received,” said a senior source.
The search continued through Saturday and led Gardaí to the apartment on Achill Road where they found Mr McCarthy’s remains.
Senior sources have revealed that the suspect was well known to Mr McCarthy, and detectives are not looking for anyone else in connection with the case.
Gardaí believes that Mr. McCarthy was shot where his remains were discovered.
Officers also closed a second scene in Griffith Park, where two walkways were closed for a time.
Gardaí had filed a missing person request against Mr McCarthy on Saturday afternoon, saying they were “concerned for his well-being and were trying to locate him”.