probe latest Senior gang associate arrested in Dublin jail over Keane Mulready Woods murder

Detectives have made two further arrests as part of their investigation into the shocking murder of teenager Keane Mulready Woods.

One of the men was arrested in a Dublin prison and is regarded as a senior associate of the gang behind the 17-year-old's murder.

Keane Mulready Woods was abducted, dismembered and his remains dumped in different parts of the capital earlier this year in a crime that shocked the nation.

His killing has been linked to the Drogheda feud which has claimed four lives and seen around 100 violent incidents.

A man in his early 20s was arrested at around 10am this morning under Section 42 of the Criminal Justice Act and can be held for up to 24 hours.

The man, who is being quizzed at Mountjoy garda station, is a close associate of two brothers who lead the gang suspected of carrying out the Mulready Woods murder.

He is also currently facing serious charges before the courts relating to a violent feud incident.

A second man, also aged in his 20s, was arrested shortly after 7am and is currently being held at Dundalk garda station.

He is being held under Section 50 of the Criminal Justice Act and can be questioned for up to seven days.

Mulready Woods was last seen alive on January 12 in Drogheda before his dismembered remains were discovered in a sports bag in Coolock the following day. Later that week more remains were found in a car burnt out in Drumcondra laneway.

It brings to five the number of people arrested over the shocking murder of the 17-year-old teenager.

A Garda spokeswoman said: "Gardaí investigating the murder of Keane Mulready Woods in January 2020 have made two further arrests this Thursday morning.

"A man in his early 20s was arrested shortly after 7am this morning and is currently detained at Dundalk Garda Station under the provisions of Section 50 of the Criminal Justice Act 2007.

"Another man also in his early 20s was arrested shortly after 10am this morning and is currently detained at Mountjoy Garda station under the provisions of Section 42 of the Criminal Justice Act 1999.

"The man arrested on Tuesday December 8 in connection with this matter continues to be detained at Drogheda Garda Station," the spokeswoman added.

The suspect arrested earlier this week is aged in his 40s and from the Drogheda area.

While he is not believed to have been directly involved in the teen’s murder, gardaí suspect he may have helped the killers after the crime and is being quizzed on suspicion of impeding the investigation.

More arrests were expected this week with up to a dozen officers currently working full-time on the murder investigation which includes local detectives as well as members of the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation (NBCI).

Detectives have also trawled through a large amount of CCTV in an effort to identify various vehicles suspected of being used to dump Mulready Woods’ remains.

Gardaí made their first arrests in February when they detained two men from the Drogheda area.

A 39-year-old criminal was quizzed for several hours on suspicion of luring Keane Mulready Woods to the house where he was murdered.

The suspect, who was previously jailed over a violent knife attack, was questioned at Balbriggan garda station for several hours before being released without charge.

A second man, aged in his 50s, was also arrested and has since been charged with impeding the investigation into the murder. He is scheduled to go on trial in 2022.

It comes as PSNI detectives have been granted more time to interview a suspect over the murder of Robbie Lawlor (36)- the Dublin criminal who was a chief suspect in the Mulready Woods murder.

He was shot dead in Belfast in April during a suspected drug debt collection.

A 45-year-old man is currently being held at Musgrave Police Station over his murder.

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Online Editors