Murdered man was convicted raider

The man who died in an apparent gangland shooting in Dublin was well known to the Garda. He had more than 30 convictions, mostly for robberies, the first of which dated from 1986. He was a heroin addict and a suspected drug dealer.

Kenneth Byrne (30) was murdered at his home in Dolphin's Barn in the south inner city just before 11 p.m. on Sunday night. It is believed he knew his safety was under threat.

Byrne was released from prison on January 19th after having served less than four years of a 10-year sentence for his part in a series of armed bank robberies between February and July 1998.

He was a member of the "Umbrella Gang" who hid their faces from security cameras during robberies by using umbrellas.

At around 10.50 p.m. on Sunday a gunman ascended two flights of stairs at St Theresa's Gardens flats complex in Dolphin's Barn. He knocked on the door of the Byrne family home, where the victim was watching television with his sister.

Byrne went to the door but did not answer it, instead asking the caller to identify himself. He was then shot twice, once in the head and once in the upper body, through the door's glass panel. His mother was sleeping in the flat when the attack took place.

The victim was taken to the nearby St James's Hospital but was pronounced dead at 11.40 p.m.

The gunman fled the scene on a red Honda motorbike which he had parked in the flats complex. He is believed to have acted alone. Gardaí later recovered the handgun used in the attack. The gun was found on Clarence Mangan Road, less than a mile from the murder scene. The motorbike was found abandoned at noon yesterday on St Vincent's Road, in the south inner city.

Gardaí believe the gunman dropped the gun as he crashed the motorbike when trying to escape. The bike, which was stolen in Tallaght on Sunday, was damaged when recovered.

Supt Eddie Quirke of Kevin Street Garda Station said the gunman was about six feet tall. He wore a motorcycle helmet during the attack. "He escaped down Donore Avenue and then O'Donovan Road before going onto Clarence Mangan Road so we are appealing for anybody who was at those locations at the time to come forward."

Investigating gardaí were last night still trying to establish a clear motive for the attack. Links to the dead man's involvement with the drugs trade were being examined. His criminal past and his time spent in prison may also be linked to the murder, gardai said.

Members of the Garda Technical Bureau carried out an examination of the murder scene yesterday. The motorcycle and gun were also examined.

In May 2000 Byrne was sentenced to 10 years at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court for his part in a series of armed robberies in 1998 involving €90,000. At the time of his sentencing he was already serving two other terms of imprisonment, of six and three years. Those sentences were imposed at Trim Circuit Court and Tullamore Circuit Court in respect of robberies carried out in the Midlands.