A MAN in his late 30s narrowly escaped injury in an assassination attempt in south inner Dublin late last night.
The man, who is from Mary's Lane, Dublin 7, was sitting in his car at Cork Street when a gunman approached him and fired shots through the front and rear of his car.
One bullet missed the man's head by inches, lodging in the driver's seat head rest.
The intended victim drove from the scene and went to Sundrive Garda Station in Crumlin where he was questioned by gardai about the attack.
It is suspected it was carried out by a south inner city criminal armed with a handgun. However, the reason for the attack is not clear.
The car, a Nissan Micra, had its front and rear windscreens shattered. It is understood several shots were fired in the attack.
The incident is the latest in a series of gun attacks by criminals in Dublin in the past year which have led to 13 deaths, including that of the journalist, Veronica Guerin, who is believed to have been killed on the orders of a major criminal figure now living abroad.
The upsurge in shootings in the city has coincided with a series of disputes between criminal figures in Dublin.
Last week another Dublin man, Mr Michael Brady, was shot dead as he was about to drive into an apartment block on Ellis Quay, not far from the scene of last night's attack.
Mr Brady was not involved in any form of organised crime and is believed to have been shot dead as a result of a personal dispute. Mr Brady (38) had served eight years in prison for strangling his wife in 1987. The two incidents are not related, gardai said last night.