Dad shot dead near his kids
Killers lay in wait to ambush father of three
THE man shot dead yards from his kids was out on bail for gun offences, it emerged yesterday.
Career criminal Darragh Nugent, 35, was ambushed outside his home on Monday night. It is believed he was murdered over a drugs-related row in Clondalkin, West Dublin, not connected to the bloody Kinahan/hutch feud. Residents in his quiet West Dublin estate are horrified after the dad-ofthree was callously shot up to five times at 9.40pm. His killers lay in wait for 40 minutes before opening fire. Two of the victim’s three children, a boy aged three and a nine-year-old girl were inside the house on Wheatfield Avenue at the time. Nugent, who had not been warned his life was in danger, spent time in prison and was on bail for firearms offences after he was chased by officers last February and caught with a handgun and ammunition. Gardai believe the door of his home was kicked in before the horrific shooting. It’s unclear if more people entered the house, but an argument spilled out on to the street, where Nugent was gunned down.
SHOCKED
Residents in the area told how they’ve been left deeply shocked by his death. Despite Nugent’s links to crime, some neighbours described him as “harmless” and “friendly”. One said: “I’d often see him walking up and down the road with his kids and he’d wave. He was friendly enough.” Another added: “I don’t know him too well but I’d see him down the bookies and we’d make small talk, but he was harmless.” Many residents recalled the moment they heard the shots being fired. One neighbour, who lived close to the scene, said she couldn’t sleep after the incident and added several street lights along the avenue had been out since Thursday. She revealed: “There were fireworks here last night but these didn’t sound like fireworks. “My little sister came in and ran into my mam and said she heard at least six or seven shots fired, she was shaken up by it. “I called to try and get them fixed but it was very dark around here last night. You couldn’t see anything and then something like this happens. It’s terrifying.” Speaking at a press conference yesterday, Supt Dermot Mann said: “I’m appealing to anyone who may have been in the area from 9pm to 9.40pm. “We under- stand a large saloon car possibly a BMW, an older car left the area at speed. “To date we haven’t located the car and we are uncertain as to where it went after Wheatfield Avenue. “We know it went on to Collinstown Road. Locating that car is very important to our investiga- tion. We are appealing to anyone who may have been in the area; delivery men, taxi men or indeed people out walking. “Darragh was a family man and we will be making every effort to find the perpetrators of this crime. “An incident room at Lucan Garda station can be contacted on 01 666 7300.”