Gardai seek man after shooting

The GARDA helicopter was deployed in Co Offaly last night in the search for a young man gardai want to interview in connection with the death of a man at a house in Belmont on Thursday night.

The dead man, a 25-yearold local, was shot in the lower body after an altercation at a party in Beechgrove, Belmont, near Cloghan. His body was removed to Tullamore General Hospital last night where a post-mortem was expected to be carried out by the State Pathologist, Dr John Harbison.

Dr Harbison had earlier carried out an appraisal of the scene. Initial reports suggested the dead man, who has not been named, was involved in an exchange of words after he refused to give his name to another man at the party.

Gardai said yesterday they were anxious to interview this second man, who left the party shortly after the shooting. They are also anxious to trace the gun used, thought to be a shotgun.

Members of the National Garda Bureau of Criminal Investigation sealed off the house yesterday and began a detailed examination of the scene.

Gardai have set up an incident room at Birr Garda station and are appealing for everyone who was at the party to come forward and make a statement. They say they are following a definite line of inquiry.

The dead man lived 10 miles away.