A private courier in Cork who was shot in the legs and left bleeding in a field by his attackers early yesterday morning may have been punished because, unusually, his van did not contain cash, Garda sources have said.
The courier, in his 40s, who managed to crawl out of a field after the attack which occurred around 6 a.m., was found in a semi-conscious state by a passer-by on the Lee Road.
Gardaí and the emergency services were alerted and the man, who was able to give an initial description of his attackers, was rushed to the Cork University Hospital where his condition was later said to be stable.
According to Garda sources, the only apparent motive for the attack was to steal money, and when none was found, the courier was shot as a punishment.
The ordeal began shortly before 6 a.m. when the courier's van was stopped by a roadblock manned by two armed and masked men on the narrow Inchigaggan Bridge leading to the Lee Road.
The private courier makes regular daily deliveries to banks in Cork city and it would seem his attackers were well aware of his movements. He was forced to drive to a field off the Lee Road but when the armed men failed to find any cash, they shot him and left him bleeding profusely in the field. Before they made their getaway in another car, the men set fire to their own car.
A Garda forensics team later examined the burned-out vehicle. The injured man is expected to make a full recovery.