Gardaí investigating the killing of a man in west Dublin are to interview his partner, who is said to be traumatised after witnessing the attack.
Noel Kirwan, 62, was in his car when a gunman shot him in the head at the St Ronan's Drive housing estate yesterday evening.
Gardaí suspect that Mr Kirwan, who was a friend of Gerry Hutch, could be the latest victim of the ongoing feud between the Hutch and Kinahan crime gangs.
A firearm has been recovered as well as the burned-out white van used by the killers.
House-to-house inquiries are being carried out and the senior garda in charge of policing Dublin said every line of inquiry is being pursued.
Assistant Commissioner Jack Nolan described the murder of Mr Kirwan as a horrific and vicious killing.
He said gardaí would be out in force over the Christmas period and he appealed for anyone with information to contact them.
Mr Kirwan had just driven his Ford Mondeo into the driveway of his partner's home when a lone gunman walked up and shot him several times through the driver's window.
The gunman was driven away in a white Peugeot Partner van, which was found burned out near Neilstown Shopping Centre.
The assistant commissioner acknowledged that people were worried because of the feud-related killings.
However, he said 18 murders are being investigated since the shooting of David Byrne at the Regency Hotel and people were before the courts, files were with the Director of Public Prosecutions and a large number of firearms had been seized.
Gardaí confident progress will be made in investigation into Dublin's latest 'horrific' gang killing. More: https://t.co/lsEKZPBkNN pic.twitter.com/VKdZLxLX2B
— RTÉ News (@rtenews) December 23, 2016
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Archbishop Martin speaks out against latest killing
Catholic Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin has urged people with information on the killing to pass it on to the gardaí either directly or indirectly.
He said that experiences with organised crime gangs such as the Mafia in Italy showed that only courageous people bring about change.
Speaking on RTÉ’s News at One, Dr Martin said most people would have hoped that the killings in the feud would have been brought to an end by someone within the community where the gangs are based.
He also dismissed the chief beneficiaries of the trade for enjoying the comforts it brought while not caring about its victims.
