Sligo man shot in front of partner and baby

The man gunned down on a Sligo street on Thursday was shot in front of his partner and their small baby, it has emerged.

Taoiseach Bertie Ahern, who was on a visit to the town, was urged by local politicians to provide more resources and personnel for the Garda Síochána as the murder hunt continued.

Hughie McGinley (26), Connaughton Road, Sligo, died at Sligo General Hospital on Thursday night, some hours after being shot in the head as he sat behind the wheel of his van which was parked on Grattan Street in the town centre.

While senior gardaí are insisting they are keeping an open mind about the motive for the brutal killing carried out in front of shoppers, it is widely believed to be linked to a bitter local feud between two families.

The Mayor of Sligo, Cllr Declan Bree, who met the Taoiseach at a function in Sligo last night, urged Mr Ahern to provide more Garda resources.

But Mr Bree insisted that the level of serious crime in Sligo was still low compared to other towns of its size.

He said it was unacceptable that there had been two shootings in the town in as many weeks but he pleaded with local people to co-operate with gardaí.

State Pathologist Dr Marie Cassidy carried out a postmortem at Sligo General Hospital.

Meanwhile, detectives yesterday continued their examination of a burnt-out motorbike which was found in a quarry at Carrowmore, a few miles outside the town.

Supt Michael Barrett, who is heading the investigation, confirmed that a dark-coloured motorbike was involved in the killing.

Witnesses described how a pillion passenger alighted from the bike, walked across the road and shot Mr McGinley.

Supt Barrett appealed for assistance from anyone who saw a motorbike travelling in the Grattan Street/John Street area towards the Showgrounds football pitch, to contact gardaí.

Local Fianna Fáil TD Jimmy Devins appealed for calm yesterday, saying he was worried about the danger of reprisals.

As gardaí conducted door-to-door inquiries yesterday, one eyewitness told how Mr McGinley's partner and small baby witnessed the horrific attack. The man said he was standing in a nearby shop when he heard the shot.

"At first I thought it might have been a car back-firing, but then a woman ran in asking for an ambulance to be called. I looked out the window and saw a woman with a baby in her arms, standing there screaming."

The witness said that he understood that the woman had just jumped out of the back of the van. He said that as he watched, two men jumped into Mr McGinley's van, one on each side, and they slid the victim into the middle before driving off towards the hospital.

Mr McGinley's family had been travelling in a van behind him and brought him to the hospital after the shooting.