Man remains in critical condition following Co Down shooting

Rebecca Black, PA

A man remains in a critical condition after being shot in County Down earlier this month.

The man, aged in his 40s, was shot in the abdomen in the Rathfriland Road area of Banbridge on April 12th.

Police said detectives are continuing to investigate the incident and carried out a search in the town on Friday.

Two men, aged 39 and 46, were arrested in connection with the investigation and are currently on police bail to allow for further inquiries.

A police spokesperson confirmed the victim remains in hospital.

“His condition is unchanged – critical, but stable,” they said.

“Our inquiries are progressing two weeks on since the attack, and this afternoon we carried out a search of a property in the Banbridge area.

“As a result of the search officers seized a number of items from the house that have now been removed for further examination.

“Today’s search is the fourth one to have taken place since the shooting – others have been conducted in the Mullaghbawn and Dromara areas, as well as Banbridge.”

They added: “We also continue to investigate a line of inquiry that the suspect made off from the scene in a silver-coloured Peugeot vehicle, which was later found burnt in the Drone Hill Road area of Corbet.

“I would reiterate our appeal that we are keen to hear from anyone who witnessed what happened or noticed anything suspicious, to make contact with police on 101, quoting reference number 1683 12/04/24.

“We would especially like to hear from anyone who may have any CCTV, dash-cam or mobile footage of what happened. This information could greatly help with our inquiries.”