McCartney sisters support family of Dublin victim

The sisters of murdered Belfast man Robert McCartney have pledged their full support to the family of Dublin man Joseph Rafferty, who was shot dead by an IRA gunman in a west Dublin housing estate in April.

Following a meeting in Belfast yesterday with Mr McCartney's sisters, Mr Rafferty's sister Esther Uzell said her brother's murder was a "carbon copy" of Robert McCartney's killing.

"We are 100 per cent certain the person who murdered Joseph is a member of Sinn Féin/IRA and we have had nothing but lies from that day on. Now we are going to unite together to get justice," Ms Uzell said referring to the McCartney family's campaign.

She travelled to Belfast with her sister Sandra and brother-in-law Bart Little.

"We believe five or six people were involved in planning Joseph's murder," Ms Uzell said.

"From last October on a continuous basis we were threatened as a family and Joseph was threatened he was going to be shot, he was going to be taken out by the 'Ra [IRA]. He was targeted because he stood up to this person who had assaulted his younger sister. Because of that his life was taken."

Catherine McCartney said: "The incidents around Joseph's death are very similar to our own. We are talking about the murder of two men. For our two cases murder is murder and can only be sorted by the rule of law."

Mr Rafferty's family has already met Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny and Labour leader Pat Rabbitte. A meeting with Taoiseach Bertie Ahern is also planned.

Garda sources have confirmed to The Irish Times the suspect in the Rafferty murder was in the IRA. The dead man's family say he has been active in Sinn Féin.

Mr Rafferty, a 29-year-old father of one, was gunned down last April in the Ongar housing estate in west Dublin where he lived. He was originally from the south inner city; in the months leading up to his murder he had become embroiled in a dispute with a family from that area.

Mr Rafferty was told a number of times by members of the family he had clashed with that he would be "got" by the IRA.

The woman whose sons he had become embroiled with is in a relationship with a former member of the IRA. He is the only suspect in the murder.

Ms Uzell reported the threats against her brother's life to Cllr Dáithí Doolan of Sinn Féin late last year and early this year.

She said Mr Doolan assured her on a number of occasions that the people involved had been spoken to and that the matter had been resolved. However, on April 12th Mr Rafferty was shot dead.

Mr Doolan has said at no time was any threat to Mr Rafferty's life reported to him. Yesterday he described Mr Rafferty's murder as a "cowardly and brutal act" and said those responsible must face justice.