IRA faction claims killing at Dublin boxing event
DUBLIN -- An Irish Republican Army faction has claimed responsibility for killing a reputed member of a drug-dealing gang in a machine gun attack on a Dublin boxing pre-match event, and is threatening to kill more criminal rivals.
The Continuity IRA issued a statement Monday to the BBC in Belfast saying its members were responsible for Friday's killing of 33-year-old David Byrne. Police say six people committed the attack, including three disguised as police officers armed with assault rifles.
In the statement the outlawed faction -- one of several small groups still plotting violence in neighboring Northern Ireland -- accused Byrne of involvement in the 2012 Dublin killing of a senior figure in another IRA faction.
Police say IRA factions are heavily involved in Dublin's underworld and supply weapons to rival gangs.