THE criminal son of a murdered dissident republican was among four people being questioned last night in connection with the assassination of gangland drug boss Robbie Lawlor.
The Dubliner, who is thought to have ordered the savage murder of teenager Keane Mulready Wood earlier this year, had travelled to Ardoyne in north Belfast on Saturday to collect a significant drug debt.
The 36-year-old was attacked as he tried to flee a house in Etna Drive shortly before midday, a single gunman shooting him several times in the head at close range in front of horrified residents.
He died almost instantly in the front garden of the property.
The killer, who had local knowledge of Ardoyne, made his getaway into the estate after entering and leaving the property through a back door.
A car thought to have been used to transport the gunman to the house, a 2010 Volkswagen Scirocco, registration YLZ 7052, was set on fire in nearby Kingston Court.
The murder weapon has not yet been recovered.
Three men - aged 27, 30 and 33 - and a 17-year-old boy were arrested in connection with the killing.
The 27-year-old was arrested from a property in the Crumlin area of Co Antrim. He was released unconditionally this morning.
Searches were also carried out in the Rodney Drive area of west Belfast on Saturday.
While no arrests were made, a white Golf GTI was seized by police for forensic examination.
The victim was known as one of the most ruthless criminals in Ireland and was linked to the shocking murder of Drogheda teenager Keane Mulready Wood, who was abducted, tortured and dismembered in January.
The 17-year-old's remains were discovered at two different locations in north Dublin, with his legs thrown from a car in a sports bag, close to the home of one of Lawlor's main rivals.
His head and hands were found in a burning car and his torso has never been recovered.
A number of Lawlor's relatives travelled to Ardoyne on Saturday, having first alerted gardaí to say they believed that the body was that of the father-of-three.
Local people say the distressed relatives remained at the police cordon for several hours.
In the past Lawlor has been linked to at least four gangland-style murders.
In December last year he walked free from court after being found not guilty of threatening to murder his former girlfriend’s partner and of attempting to murder his mother.
He was also acquitted of possessing a gun and of killing a dog. At that time he had an address at the Rise, Laytown, Co Meath.
Since then there has been an escalation in tensions between Lawlor's Drogheda-based gang, made up mainly of very young drug runners, and a rival drug gang based in the Coolock are of north Dublin.
Detective Superintendent Jason Murphy from the PSNI’s Major Investigation Team described the shooting as "a brutal killing ".
"I am astounded by the recklessness of the killer or killers. Not only did they carry out this callous murder leaving a family experiencing their worst nightmare, but they did not care that children and other members of this north Belfast community were placed at risk," he said.
"Those involved in this murder selfishly gave no thought to the impact on frontline emergency services who are already working hard to keep people safe with an already stretched resource.
“I know the community is in shock at the moment but I would appeal to anyone who has information about this appalling murder to bring that information forward to the police so that we can remove this dangerous gunman and his associates from the streets."
SDLP councillor Paul McCusker said there was "immense shock in Ardoyne".
"Those responsible for this barbaric crime have no support here. They need to be caught and brought to justice. I would encourage anyone with information to bring it to the police as soon as possible."
Sinn Féin MLA Gerry Kelly appealed for calm, saying "anybody with any information about this horrific incident should bring it immediately to the PSNI".
Chief Constable Simon Byrne visited Ardoyne yesterday and spoke to local people and politicians amid fears there could be retaliation for the murder of the crime boss.
It is not the first time gangland-style violence has ended in loss of life in the north.
In December 2018 Jim 'JD' Donegan was shot dead as he sat outside his son's school in west Belfast.
A hitman for hire thought to be linked to the INLA carried out the attack. No-one has been charged with the shooting.
In August last year 54-year-old career criminal Malcolm McKeown was shot six times in the head and body in a gangland-style attack as he sat in car in Waringstown, Co Down.
A number of people have been charged in connection with the attack.
