Woman (30) shot in wake of IRA row in Dublin

A WOMAN closely related to Real IRA killer Sean Connolly was fighting for her life last night after she was shot along with another man during an internal row between IRA criminals in the capital.

The innocent 30-year-old woman was shot in the chest and arm at a flat in Bernard Curtis House, Bluebell in Dublin 12, just before 1pm yesterday. She was rushed to St James’s Hospital and remained in a critical condition last night having underwent surgery.

A man, in his early 30s, was also shot alongside her in the apartment. He fled the scene and later presented himself at St James’s Hospital suffering from a gunshot wound. His condition is described as serious. Senior sources say there was an “IRA meeting” at Bernard Curtis House involving a number of dissident criminals when the double shooting took place.

Several criminals linked to the Real IRA attended the meeting when the in-fighting began and the shooting took place, sources say. At least three men were in garda custody last night, two in Kevin Street and one at Kilmainham.

A source said: “This was some kind of IRA war council that went south, and two people were shot. There was in-fighting going on and it led to the double shooting. The consequences of this will lead to even bigger repercussions and frictions within the Real IRA. Sean Connolly will not take this lying down in prison.” The 30-year-old woman is closely related to the IRA killer, who is serving life for murdering veteran crime boss Eamon Kelly.

Kelly (65) was shot dead as he returned home from a betting shop in December 2012.