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Updated 8.20pm
GARDAÍ ARE APPEALING for people who regularly use Bray Boxing Club to speak with them if they noticed any suspicious behaviour at the gym in recent days or weeks.
The appeal follows a shooting at the Co Wicklow gym this morning that left one man dead and two others seriously injured.
The incident at Bray Boxing Club occurred at 6.55am. A gunman walked into the gym and fired a number of shots. He was wearing dark clothing and had his face covered.
One man aged 50 was killed in the shooting. Gardaí originally stated he was aged 30, but they issued a correction this afternoon. He has been named as local man Bobby Messett.
The father of three from Kilmacanogue in north Wicklow was very highly thought of and was known in his community for his love of exercise. Gardaí believe he was a completely innocent victim who was in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Gardai wish to trace the movements of the silver coloured Volkswagen Caddy van with Northern Irish registration used in the shooting. It is believed that this van travelled from Bray through Shankill and the Cornelscourt area before being abandoned on Pigeon House Road at approximately 8.05am where a male was seen leaving the van and cycling away.
Gardai appealed:
Messett was pronounced dead at the scene. Speaking to reporters this afternoon, Superintendent Patrick Ward said the man was attending a fitness session at the gym, as he regularly did.
They were just about to start their session when somebody came in – a gunman – he was carrying a firearm. We believe it was a handgun and he started opening fire just as they were about to start the session and three people received gunshot wounds.
Pete Taylor, father and former trainer of Irish boxing champion Katie Taylor, was injured in the incident and is in serious condition. The 57-year-old sustained injuries to his arm and chest.
Another man, aged 35, was also injured and has been taken to St Vincent’s Hospital. It is understood he suffered gunshot wounds to the leg.
“We have no known motive at the moment for the crime, we don’t yet know why the crime was carried out,” Superintendent Ward told reporters.
Following examination of CCTV in the area, gardaí are now appealing for information about a silver coloured Volkswagen Caddy with Northern Irish plates, believed to have been used by the shooter.
The van is believed to have travelled along Seapoint Road towards Bray Town Centre. There are also possibly sightings on the Dublin Road, but these have not yet been confirmed. Anyone with dashcam footage of the area from that time of the morning is asked to share it with detectives.
Gardaí believe there was just one shooter, but they are trying to establish whether there was someone else in the van with him.
Superintendent Ward said there were up to 20 people in the gym this morning when the shooting occurred and investigators are asking witnesses to speak to them about what they saw. They are also asking people who regularly use the gym and who may have noticed something suspicious recently to get in contact.
Gardaí are conducting door-to-door enquiries and are collecting CCTV footage.
Olympic, European and World champion boxer Katie Taylor previously trained at Bray Boxing Club, but no longer has any involvement with the gym. It is understood she is currently training in the United States. The club was set up by her father.
Speaking to TheJournal.ie, local Sinn Féin TD John Brady, said he was “devastated” by today’s news.
He said many local people train in the gym and the victims are “good decent people”.
Brady said it was too early to speculate about a motive, but said he is thinking of the families and friends of the victims.
“I’m absolutely shocked, anyone could have been in there. It seems like it’s totally indiscriminate.”
Local woman Elizabeth Tynnan, who works in her family’s factory next to the club, said she saw people being taken away in ambulances this morning when she arrived.
“It’s crazy, I could have been in the middle of it.”
She said Pete Taylor runs a bootcamp class at 7am and many of the local young men attend.
The woman said the club is “fantastic” and that it had done “wonders” for the town.
Speaking to RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Minister for Justice Charlie Flanagan described the incident as “shocking”. He said gardaí are “actively engaged” at the scene and are appealing for people with any information to contact them.
The minister said it is important that “the appropriate level of evidence is coming out” at an early stage in this investigation.
Gardaí are at the scene and the garda helicopter is scanning the area. They are appealing for witnesses to contact Bray Garda Station on 01 6665300.
- With reporting by Christina Finn at the scene in Bray, Co Wicklow and Garreth MacNamee
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FFFG: politely asking industry to behave since 1916.
@ed ed: I disagree. Enforcement in the years 1916 – 1923 was more effective than anything since.
@ed ed: enforce a maximum % above ECB rate for all primary residential mortgages….. the banks exist only because we bailed their behinds out. They need a licence to operate, and make this a condition of it.
@Brian Keelty: Pepper would be even bigger if we hadn’t bailed out the pillar banks, you do realise this?
Disgraceful the way this government will not take action for the better of its citizens and stand in the sidelines shouting is just bizarre. Time up FFG.
@Vincent Hughes: Oh yeah,and sf will march into all the energy providers/banks/supermarkets/insurance companies etc etc and DEMAND they lower their prices for ‘the people’…..they will be laughed out the door and told ‘if you want to subsidise it,go right ahead’.
@uUleRhCu: As sure as night follows day, Here’s Terry with his anti SF nonsense on a non SF story, If SF do DEMAND services to do what you’ve said – at least they would be TRYING not like FFG who have had a bite at the cherry for 100 years and get laughed at constantly… Let’s give someone else a bite of that cherry, I don’t think anybody could be as inept as FFG.
@KTH: you’re 100pc right.
@KTH: this absolute nonsense that things can’t get any worse is exactly that.nonsense.And sf are the gift that keeps giving in regards to their silly promises that they will ‘fix’ things that they have no control of…pearse Doherty had a big whinge at the government recently about hotel costs!!!.what has that to do with the government……finally I will be as vocal as I am now about the next opposition and peoples stupid call outs to the government to fix things that they can’t.
@uUleRhCu:
I never said things cant get any worse did I?
So you’re the one talking nonsense.
What has hotel costs got to do with the government?
Do the hotel lobby not go cap in hand all the time looking for more favourable VAT rates all the time?
Who is that they ask for their “special” VAT rates?
Oh yeah it’s the government.
So when the hotels GAZUMP their loyal customers with their prices it actually could be brought up by the government to address this.
@uUleRhCu: tbf here now John, current hotel costs have an awful lot to do with government. It was this government who decided to take in 100k (?) refugees with absolutely no where to accommodate them. They were then shoe horned in to hotels at a large expense to the tax payer. This has basically decimated the supply of hotel rooms in this country and ultimately driven prices through the roof. I say that with no real fondness for SF but it is very fair to blame the price of hotels on the government as it is 100% their fault.
@Journal Commenter: hotel prices were high before the Ukrainian war.
@uUleRhCu: they weren’t cheap that’s for sure. But come on, theres no comparison now. If there is an event on in Dublin you have hostels looking for anywhere from €400 to €800 for a bed in a 10 bed dormitory. I’ve seen it first hand. And that is solely because there is no demand due to the massive amount of hotels housing immigrants and that absolutely is government policy. It is also having massive adverse effects on the tourism industry here. The government cop a lot of unfair criticism for stuff beyond their control, but when it comes to accommodation costs it is largely on them. Lets be fair both ways.
@Journal Commenter: *there is no supply that should say. There is plenty of demand haha.
@Journal Commenter: 175 euro for 7 October in the rochestown lodge,not a chance.
@Thomas: I have a wedding next year in west cork. There is a large number of rooms reserved for the guests. Mind you they want close to the bones of 350 per rooms per night for the privilege. As if weddings are not expensive enough as it is without throwing close to 700 on top for the two nights stay. Absolute gouging when they are already making a fortune from the wedding you would imagine. I certainly won’t be paying it anyway.
@Journal Commenter: I don’t blame,we’re having our kids after christening party in said venue,il be spending a few hundred euro,meal etc,like yourself I won’t be paying that to stay.
@Thomas: apologies, I don’t blame you.
@Thomas: I’m lucky all the same though, I have a friend who actually lives fairly close to the wedding venue and he invited me and the missus to stay with him and his wife for it. Il get him a good bottle of whiskey and bring himself and the wife out for a nice lunch before we head off again as a thank you. But the sad thing is a lot of wedding guests are travelling from all over the country and there is next to nothing available in the area to rent other than the hotel rooms in question, so most will be forced in to paying that kings ransom. Disgusting greed from an industry that not long ago was crying and pleading to be helped when Covid raged. As the saying goes, eaten bread is soon forgotten! I hope ye enjoy the christening all the same and have a good day out from it!
@Journal Commenter: Thank you,and you enjoy the wedding,and west cork bye the way,lovely spot.
@Journal Commenter: are you suggesting the government should ignore their international and EU obligations in regards to taking in migrants? SF are fully behind the migration numbers, so where will that leave you?
This country is in bits:
Law and disorder
Mortgages
Housing Crisis
More excise duty on petrol/diesel is being discussed
Homeless
Cost of living
Skilled workers moving abroad
Road deaths
Climate crisis
And you can add and add and add to this
nothing is getting better
The country is an absolute disgrace and it’s all down to FF and FG.
General Election as soon as possible, please.
No votes for FF or FG at all – will put anyone else all the way down the ballot paper.
No backdoors for these greedy greedy men/women on over 100k a year in their private cars and government-sponsored holidays on private jets.
@Someone Financing The Welfare Leeches:
A wonderful contribution to a serious situation. Well done.
Please go back under your bridge where you use a puddle as a mirror.
@Rafa C: The republic is starting to look like (and I cant believe I am typing this), A Failed State!
@Gerard Hayden: Starting? It’s been failing for decades!
@Rafa C: the space button is your friend Rafa.
At the end of the day a CEO of a bank is only interested in making a profit – so the house will always win. They just pretend to listen to government and the game goes on. If government really interested in tackling costs of mortgage they should look to remove dual income calculation and base it on one pay etc. we are still living with low interest rates (even though they are going up). But we know high property prices benefit property agents/lawyers/banks and government – and they will tell us it’s our fault when it all comes tumbling down!!!
@Shane C: Why base borrowing on a single income? All that would do is give preference to individual borrowers over couples/families
@Mick Duvanny: good point but then again we got house inflation due to us lumping gross incomes together in the first place – surely house price would reduce based on single income?
Pepper are a disgrace.
That debt still has to be paid so the term will just be extended after the 2 years at low rate. More interest for them overall.
And more debt for those stuck mortgage holders.
glad I left ireland
@John Terry: “energy providers/banks/supermarkets/insurance companies etc…”
Gov can always:
Energy providers – see Nationalisation of EnergyvSystem: Motion [Private Members] Vol.1031 No. 2, 12 Dec 2022
Banks: create a state or county bank of last resort for lending / mortgages
Supermarkets – make them publish figures for turnover / profit on a regular basis
Insurance companies: create a state or county insurance company of last resort
With the stroke of a pen, government can do any of these without breaking EU rules.
I often wonder why Ulster bank and KBC jumped ship !
@:
@Trent: both of them called it wrong. All the Banks making record profits with the ECB hikes. Bad management decisions!
@Dave X: no they didn’t. Ulster bank wanted out of the Irish market for years. Nat west make more than enough profits without needing UB and the pain in the ass of having to deal with the CBI and the hoop jumping required to do business in Ireland is my understanding from what Iv been told by people within the bank itself. It has nothing to do with bad management decisions or getting it wrong.
‘Non-entity’ – quite the Freudian slip there lads …
have your say