Woman chief suspect in triple shooting that left baby injured
A WOMAN is being treated as the chief suspect in a triple shooting which left an eightmonth-old baby with 1 5 shotgun pellets in his leg.
Gardai investigating the horrific gun attack in west Dublin have also recovered the firearm they believe was used in the shooting.
It comes as baby John, his mother Lynn Doyle (29) and a 17-year-old boy were continuing to be treated in hospital for gunshot wounds.
Yesterday investigating detectives arrested a 23-year-old woman in Wicklow.
She is being held on suspicion of being in possession of a firearm linked to the shooting.
This woman’s relative, a 48-year-old man, was arrested in the aftermath of the shooting in the Parslickstown area.
He was detained after shotgun cartridges were found at his home.
Detectives now believe that a woman fired a number of shots at the home in Parslickstown Gardens, Mulhuddart, on Monday afternoon.
As part of the investigation, an operation was carried out near the scene of the shooting by the Garda’s divisional search team which led to the recovery of a sawn-off shotgun.
Officers believe this weapon was used in the incident.
Baby John may require further surgery as doctors attempt to remove the 16 shotgun pellets that struck him.
It is understood that 15 of these are lodged in his leg, while he also suffered injuries to his hand.
John was in his mother Lynn’s arms when the gunman opened fire at the property. Ms Doyle (29) was hit in the arm by at least three pellets while the 17-year-old boy was struck in the abdomen.
Gardai are following a definite line of inquiry and believe the shooting is linked to an ongoing feud in the area.
As part of this feud, a property was shot at in the Mulhuddart area on December 3, but no injuries were reported. The dispute is understood to have escalated in recent months after the collapse of a court case involving a serious knife attack.
Since then, a number of titfor-tat attacks have been carried out during which serious threats were made and property was damaged.
Gardai have kept a constant presence in the small cul-de-sac of Parslickstown Gardens to prevent further bloodshed.
The intended victim of the shooting, Michael Collins, described the incident as “beyond evil”.
“The bullet was meant for me but I ducked just in time. It’s a disgrace — targeting a baby is beyond evil,” he said.
❝ The bullet was meant for me but I ducked just in time. This is a disgrace, it is just beyond evil