Gardaí have ruled out robbery in the abduction of a couple in Co Westmeath last night.
The man and woman were taken from their rented home in Mullingar and driven to Derry where the man was shot in both ankles.
Police in Northern Ireland have been questioning two men in relation to the incident.
Gardaí say the abducted couple have no paramilitary links.
The man, aged 42, is originally from Northern Ireland and the woman, aged 38, is believed to be from Dublin. They had been living on the Newbrook Road in Mullingar for the past year.
Last night between 8pm and 9pm four men abducted the couple and brought them to Derry in what is thought to be a white Ford Transit Van.
The woman was dressed in a white boiler suit when found in High Park in the Creggan area of Derry early this morning, the man who had been beaten and shot was wearing only his underwear.
This evening Supt Padraig Rhattigan renewed an appeal for information for anyone who may have seen anything suspicious near the couple's rented home in Mullingar.
Gardaí and the PSNI say they are a number of issues they are examining, but RTÉ News understands that a financial dispute may be behind the abduction and shooting.
This afternoon the man underwent surgery at Altnagelvin Hospital in Derry.
