THE murder of Jim Donegan was carried out by dissident republicans who were paid to kill the high profile criminal in a gangland style hit.
Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Peter Montgomery said this week two republican groupings working together - the INLA and ONH (Óglaigh na hÉireann) were responsible for the murder.
The 43-year-old was sitting in his red Porsche Panamera outside St Mary's Christian Brothers' Grammar School on the Glen Road waiting for his teenage son on December 4 last year when he was shot dead by a lone gunman who used a semi-automatic pistol.
The killing happened in front of horrified pupils and parents.
Despite the involvement of dissident republicans The Irish News understands that individual members of both organisations were acting as 'guns for hire' and the murder was not officially sanctioned.
Donegan, who was heavily involved in the drugs trade, had been living in Lisburn with his wife of just two years. However he wrongly believed he was safe travelling in and out of west Belfast as he had been paying protection money to dissident republicans.
His widow Laura is thought to have since left Northern Ireland with her son from a previous relationship to start a new life in Spain.
The Irish News understands that members of ONH helped plan the murder and provided the weapon.
The gunman who shot Donegan as he sat in his £80,000 car was a former INLA hitman who has carried out a number of previous shootings on behalf of the organisation.
Following the murder, two Belfast-based criminals, who were part of the same drug dealing network as Donegan, made contact with ONH to appeal for their safety.
Having originally threatened to avenge their friend's brutal murder they later met with senior dissidents and offered weapons and money in exchange for a guarantee of safety.
Detectives said this week they have reviewed more than 340 hours of CCTV and have seized 607 evidential exhibits, taken 213 statements, conducted 12 searches and made 13 arrests. However no-one has been charged to date.
The Police Ombudsman's Office is also investigating how the PSNI dealt with information, received through intelligence sources, about a potential threat to the 43-year-old before his murder.
Mr Montgomery said the victim's family deserved "to have answers and this community deserves to have this dangerous man sent to prison for this callous murder".
"I am appealing for the public’s help to remove this ruthless man from our streets," he said.
