A murder inquiry began late last night after a man was shot dead in west Dublin in a gangland-style attack. The victim was shot at about 8pm on Coldcut Road in Clondalkin.
It was the third fatal gangland- style shooting so far this year and comes after a comparatively calm start to the year following record levels of gun homicide in 2006 in which there were 26 killings.
The scene of the latest shooting was sealed off last night. The State Pathologist, Dr Marie Cassidy, was on her way to the area to carry out an initial examination of the victim's remains before they were removed for a postmortem. This is expected to take place today.
Members of the Garda Technical Bureau were also carrying out an examination of the scene. The precise circumstances of the shooting were unclear late last night.
However, it is understood that the victim was shot as he walked along a pavement close to a football pitch. The scene is close to houses and a row of shops.
It is believed that the man was shot at least once in the head by his attackers.
A senior Garda source said the motive was unclear but one line of inquiry being explored was whether the killing was drug-related.
However, the source said the investigation was at a very early stage and that more details were likely to become clear early today.
Both of this year's other other two fatal shootings have also taken place in the Clondalkin area of Dublin.
The murder investigation is being conducted by gardaí from Ronanstown Garda station.
A case conference is due to be held at the station early this morning to review progress and to plan the direction of the investigation.