Further arrests expected on anniversary of Cork city murder

A YEAR on from the brutal murder of Aidan O’Driscoll, gardaí have said that they expect further arrests in the case as they await the go-ahead to bring charges against a number of people.

O’Driscoll, the former chief of staff of the Real IRA, and a father of two, was gunned down at point-blank range in Blackpool last December, sending shockwaves through the local community.

Gardaí are awaiting a decision from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) on six individual files sent following local arrests earlier this year, Superintendent Mick Comyns has confirmed.

The files, which contain information on six people who were arrested during the investigation, are hoped to lead to further arrests.

Supt Comyns also told the Evening Echo that he was very happy with how the investigation was going and he eagerly awaited a response from the DPP.

“We are awaiting direction from the DPP and we expect more arrests to follow,” Supt Comyns said.

O’Driscoll, who had been due to marry his fiancée in January 2017, died of multiple gunshot wounds after being gunned down around 5pm on December 7, 2016, on Old Commons Road.

Mr O’Driscoll had lived for periods in Limerick and Dublin.

Gardaí had focused on a falling out with old associates in Cork as a motive for the murder of the Ballyvolane father-of-two.

Mr O’Driscoll was on his way to a painting and decorating job in a nearby house on the Old Commons Road when the fatal shots were fired. He had just been dropped off by work colleagues minutes before.

Mr O’Driscoll, who played football with Delanys GAA and managed a soccer team, had previously been the victim of a punishment attack in 2014 when he was blasted by his former associates. The then 34-year-old, known as “The Beast,” was attacked near his Ballyvolane home on the northside of Cork city.

A statement released through the 32 County Sovereignty Movement claimed responsibility for the incident.

The group said Mr O’Driscoll was targeted for his “unrepublican conduct.”

Mr O’Driscoll was previously convicted of RIRA membership and served time in jail. However, his conviction was quashed on a technicality after an appeal.