Woman hailed for ‘saving the life’ of multiple shooting victim
A WOMAN saw her close friend repeatedly shot and then used her jumper to stem the blood flow, potentially saving the man’s life.
The shooting victim, Stephen Somers, 27, was struck twice in the chest and once in the arm in the incident on Wednesday night.
Gardaí believe he was targeted as part of a local dispute.
Somers is known to gardaí. He received a five-year jail sentence for possession of a pipe bomb in Firhouse, Tallaght, south-west Dublin, in 2013.
Separately, he received a twoand-a-half-year sentence for violent disorder at Wicklow Circuit Court in July 2014.
Somers was said last night to be ‘recovering well’ from the shooting, which took place at around 8.45pm in an isolated laneway area behind SuperValu in Bray, Co. Wicklow, on Wednesday.
The victim was in the passenger seat in a parked car and the woman was in the driver’s seat when the shooting happened.
Mr Somers was shot at least three times when a gunman opened fire. The shots were fired through the driver’s side of the car.
It is understood his friend’s window was open and the gunman walked up to the vehicle.
The gunman then started shooting at Somers through the open window.
He was the intended target, sources say. The woman, who is in her late 30s, was uninjured.
‘Extremely lucky to be alive’
In the aftermath of the shooting, the woman removed her jumper and used it to stem the blood flow from his chest, potentially saving his life, sources say.
Sources say the victim is ‘extremely lucky’ to be alive.
The woman was ‘extremely upset’ when gardaí and paramedics arrived at the scene. She travelled by ambulance with Somers to Dublin’s St Vincent’s Hospital.
Detectives initially suspected the gunman had been in a car – a dark-coloured Volkswagen – but investigators have traced this car and it is in no way linked to the shooting.
They now believe he may have been on foot.
The handgun used in the attack was recovered at the scene.
The victim was able to speak to paramedics as they worked on him at the scene before being taken to St Vincent’s.
By last night, his condition was no longer regarded as life-threatening.