One dead, two hurt as gunmen dressed as police open fire at boxing weigh-in

One man has been killed and two others injured after a shooting at a boxing match weigh-in at a Dublin hotel. They were shot by three men dressed in police-style uniforms who burst into the venue, where children were among the crowd which had gathered to watch. The killers, who had the Irish word for police on the back of their flak jackets, were said to have opened fire with AK-47 rifles. The three injured men, all in their 20s or 30s, were found at the scene but one was subsequently pronounced dead.The killers’ burnt-out getaway van was found not far from the hotel.

I heard two loud gunshots from outside coming into the hotel. At which point, two men, who I thought were [police] officers - turns out they were just dressed up in [police] uniform - came in with guns.

BBC Radio Foyle’s sports reporter Kevin McAnena

A witness described the scene as “absolute pandemonium” as the crowd scattered. The weigh-in was a precursor to Saturday’s Clash of the Clans boxing event at Dublin’s National Arena, which has now been cancelled. The main fight was due to be a European lightweight title bout between Jamie Kavanagh and Antonio Jao Bento. Promoter Frank Warren was putting on the event with MGM, a Marbella-based gym run by Birmingham-born Irish boxer Matthew Macklin.

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