Christopher "Noel" Kirwan was shot dead on 22 December 2016.
He had been friends with
Gerry "the Monk" Hutch all his life.
[
]
Background
Kirwan lived in Jude's Gardens off Railway Street in Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
, then lived in Summerhill, Dublin
Summerhill ( ga, Cnoc Críonáin) is a primarily residential area of Dublin, Ireland, on the Northside of the city located roughly between Talbot Street, Gardiner Street, Mountjoy Square, Amiens Street and Ballybough. It is in the Dublin 1 pos ...
.[ He was friends with Gerry Hutch and other members of the Hutch family, and he drove Hutch to the funeral of his brother Eddie in 2016.][ His father worked in the docks and he inherited his nickname "Duck Egg".][
In the 1990s he was involved in the anti-drugs movement.][ He was charged with possession of a firearm or imitation firearm for intimidation in Ballybough Road in 1996, but people in north inner city Dublin said he had not been involved in crime in some time.]Kilbarrack
Kilbarrack ( - ''Church of St. Berach'' or ''of young Barra'') is a residential suburb of Dublin, Ireland, running inwards from the coast, about from the city's centre. It is also a civil parish in the ancient barony of Coolock. Modern-day Kilb ...
some years before being killed and later to Ronanstown with his partner.
Shooting
He and his partner had just had lunch with her daughter in Crumlin.[ He and his partner were sitting in the car outside their home when he was shot six times with a ]Makarov handgun
The Makarov pistol or PM ( rus, Пистоле́т Мака́рова, r=Pistolét Makárova, p=pʲɪstɐˈlʲet mɐˈkarəvə, t=Makarov's Pistol) is a Soviet semi-automatic pistol. Under the project leadership of Nikolay Fyodorovich Makarov, i ...
.[
]
Aftermath
Trial of Jason Keating
Jason Keating was put on trial for murdering Kirwan, but the murder charge was dropped when he admitted participating in the activities of a criminal gang and helping them to murder Kirwan.[ Keating was in the getaway car, talking to the person following the tracker on a ]laptop
A laptop, laptop computer, or notebook computer is a small, portable personal computer (PC) with a screen and alphanumeric keyboard. Laptops typically have a clam shell form factor with the screen mounted on the inside of the upper li ...
and passing on the information to the gunman.[ He brought the gunman to and from the crime scene and was involved via ]CCTV
Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signal is not openly t ...
footage and the purchase of a "burner" phone.[ Keating was sentenced to ten years in prison.][ Gardaí told the special criminal court that the only motive they could find for his killing was his association with the Monk.][
]
2022 arrests
On 14 April 2022 Declan "Mr Nobody" Brady and Martin Aylmer were charged with involvement in the murder, contrary to Section 72 of the Criminal Justice Act.Kinahan Organised Crime Group
The Kinahan Organised Crime Group (KOCG), also known as the Kinahan Cartel, is a major Irish transnational organised crime syndicate alleged to be the most powerful in Ireland and one of the largest organised crime groups in the world. It is als ...
.[ Michael Crotty was charged with involvement on 12 April 2022.][
]
References
{{Reflist
2016 deaths
People murdered in the Republic of Ireland
Deaths by firearm in the Republic of Ireland
Deaths by person in the Republic of Ireland
Organised crime events in Ireland
December 2016 crimes in Europe
December 2016 events in Ireland