A LIMERICK man who survived an assassination attempt last year has escaped for a second time after his home was targeted in a gun attack.
Jimmy Collins (42) was at home with his family at Hyde Road in Limerick when a gunman fired shots at the house in the early hours of yesterday morning. Gardaí were also last night investigating an explosion at a house near Bengal Terrace a number of hours later, which sources believe may be linked to the earlier shooting.
The first incident took place at 1.15am at the house on Hyde Road in the Ballinacurra Weston area of Limerick city.
Nobody was injured in the attack, but damage was caused to the front door. It is exactly a year since Mr Collins was targeted outside the same house where he was shot at 14 times. On that occasion he suffered a gunshot wound to his leg but claimed in an interview afterwards that those behind the shooting called him in hospital afterwards and warned they would “get him sooner or later”.
His family were evacuated from the house yesterday and were staying with family members while the scene was preserved for a technical examination. Gardaí believe the gunman used a silver Audi found burned out in Rathuaird, on the outskirts of the city, shortly afterwards.
A forensic team recovered part of an explosive device which detonated near Bengal Terrace at 5am yesterday.
It caused minor damage and gardaí say the device was not on the scale of the pipe bombs recently discovered on the outskirts of the city, but a full examination of the device was being carried out yesterday.Anyone with information about either incident is asked to contact Roxboro Garda station on 061-214340.