THE funeral of murder victim Danny McClean will take place in west Belfast today.
The 54-year-old was shot several times at close range as he parked his car close to temporary accommodation, where he had been living on the Cliftonville Road in north Belfast last week.
The lone gunman walked away from the scene.
Originally from Andersonstown, McClean had been due to appear in court this week on four paramilitary-related charges.
All charges of possessing information likely to be of use to terrorists and possession of a handgun and ammunition were formally quashed at Belfast Crown Court on Wednesday.
The father-of-two, who previously served in the British army, was convicted of terror offences linked to the organisation Oglaigh na hEireann (ONH), in January 2019.
He had been under threat from former associates since then and had been living in an apartment close to Lisburn. However after his car was vandalised he moved to temporary housing in north Belfast.
The same gunman responsible for murdering Mr McClean is also believed to have been behind the murder of Kieran Wylie, who was shot dead in his Lenadoon home in west Belfast last May.
The two men, both former members of Oghlaigh na hEireann, had fallen foul of the organisation prior to their deaths.
Mr McClean had been gathering targetting information on his former associates and was arrested in April and June 2019 in possession of personal information relating to senior dissidents.
A 32-year-old man was arrested in connection with the killing on Wednesday and remains in custody, while two brothers aged 46 and 38, arrested in north Belfast on February 2, were released unconditionally on Monday after five days in custody.
A family funeral notice read: "Loving partner of Nicola, beloved daddy of Emma and Chloe, step-daddy of Grace and a much loved granda of Conan - RIP".
Due to current Covid restrictions the funeral will be private with only close family members present.
