Three men in their late teens were arrested in Dublin this morning in relation to the murder of David Byrne in Inchicore earlier this month.
They are being held at Garda stations in the south inner city. Two of the men are detained under Section 30 of the Offences against the State Act (1939), and one under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act,(1984).
There have now been 14 arrests in connection with the investigation.
Two men in their 20s, arrested at the weekend, were released without charge yesterday. .
They were detained in west Dublin on suspicion of withholding information about Mr Byrne?s murder.
Eight teenagers, ranging from 13 to 17 years in age, have been released from custody following their arrests. These included two boys aged 13 and two teenage girls.
Of the eight teenagers arrested this week, four were detained on suspicion of withholding information about the murder, while four were held for questioning directly in relation to the murder.
One of the four questioned directly in relation to the murder is the chief suspect in the case.
A file on the alleged involvement in the murder of some of the seven released without charge is being prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions.
Gardai believe they know the identity of the four teenagers who chased Mr Byrne before one of the group caught up with him and fatally stabbed him. The attack is believed to have been part of a row over a modest drugs debt and a personal dispute between Mr Byrne and some of his attackers.
Gardai believe Mr Byrne, a petty criminal involved in a minor way in the drugs trade, came out of his home at the Davitt House complex on Davitt Road, Drimnagh, just after 10pm on Saturday, March 19th.
In a planned attack, he was chased by a gang of four teenagers or young men across a bridge over the Grand Canal and into the nearby Emmet Court residential complex in Inchicore.
One of the gang caught up with Mr Byrne in the courtyard in Emmet Court and stabbed him several times in the back and side as his accomplices kept lookout. When gardai and paramedics arrived at the scene just before 10.30pm Mr Byrne was still alive. He was taken by ambulance to St James?s Hospital. However, efforts to save him failed and he was pronounced dead at 11.45pm.
The fatal attack was captured on CCTV cameras but the four men who chased and attacked Mr Byrne hid their faces with hoods. However, they were spotted with their hoods down on another camera later on Saturday night.