Gardai suspect they have recovered the weapon used in one of Ireland’s most notorious murders – after workmen found two deadly guns at the killer’s former home.
The Irish Mirror has confirmed that a submachine gun and revolver are set to be forensically examined after they were allegedly found hidden in a cavity wall in the former home of chainsaw killer Paul Wells late last week.
He is serving life for the gruesome gun murder of his mechanic pal Kenneth O’Brien in Dublin – whose body he then dismembered with a chainsaw and dumped in a rural stretch of the Grand Canal.
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Wells, 55, has been locked up since he was found guilty of the February 2016 murder of Mr O’Brien, but the firearm he used to shoot the victim in the head has never been recovered – and detectives now suspect one of the guns found in the killer’s old home could be it.
A submachine gun, revolver as well as ammunition were found by workmen in the cavity wall of Wells’ ex-home in Dublin late last week – more than seven years after he was arrested for the gruesome murder of his pal Kenneth O’Brien.
Sources told the Irish Mirror investigators believe Wells hid them in the wall before his February 2016 arrest – and the find had nothing to do with anyone currently in the house.
“The strong belief is they belonged to Wells and nobody else knew anything about them,” a source said. “There is of course a strong possibility that one of them is the murder weapon.”
Garda ballistics experts are now set to examine the firearms, which are believed to be in good condition. Sources say they are from the old Soviet Union and are more than 30 years old. They hope to find either DNA or fingerprints on the firearms – and then use the evidence to put firearms charges to Wells.
Even though he is serving life for the murder of Mr O’Brien, he could be hit with charges over the two guns, although he is unlikely to serve any more prison time for that offence, if convicted.
They are also keen to confirm if one of the two firearms is the murder weapon.
The Irish Mirror has established that the grim find was made at Wells’ former home in Finglas, north Dublin, on St Patrick’s Day. It’s understood work was being done at the home when they made the find and the current resident – who has no idea the weapons were there – immediately contacted gardai.
A spokesman confirmed that officers were investigating a suspected weapons find at a house in Finglas last Friday. He said: “Gardaí are investigating the discovery of two suspected firearms at a residence in the Finglas South area of Dublin 11 on the afternoon of Friday 17th March 2023.
“The suspected firearms will be sent to the Garda Ballistics Unit for analysis and enquiries into this matter are ongoing.”
News of the grim weapons find comes just weeks after we revealed that mechanic Wells is suing prison bosses because he claims they breached his right to privacy.
Wells, who was serving his life sentence in Dublin’s Wheatfield prison but has subsequently been transferred to the Midlands Prison in Co Laois, lodged High Court papers at the end of January.
Wells is alleging that the Irish Prison Service breached his privacy rights. He claims that the IPS failed to protect his privacy under the terms of GDPR legislation.
That legislation forces companies and state bodies to guard the data they have on people – and Wells claims the IPS failed to do that.
It’s believed to be one of the first times that a prisoner has sued under the terms of the GDPR. His case is being taken by Belfast human rights legal team KRW Law.
KRW Law served the summons against the Prison Service, Minister for Justice Simon Harris and Attorney General Rossa Fanning SC.
Wells is alleging loss, damage, non-material loss and personal injuries because the Prison Service allegedly failed to protect his data.
He is now demanding payment of damages in compensation – including for psychiatric injury stemming from the alleged data breach. It is likely to be several years before the case comes to court – but Wells will still be locked up for at least the next decade.
Wells was caged for life in November 2018 for the 2016 murder of mechanic Kenneth O’Brien at the killer’s home in Finglas, north Dublin. He is not likely to be released until 2035 at the earliest.
He had admitted shooting dead fellow Dubliner Mr O’Brien and dismembering his body. The father-of-five pleaded not guilty to murdering the 33-year-old at his home in Barnamore Park on 15th or 16th January, 2016 – but was found guilty and jailed for life.
He claimed that the deceased had wanted him to murder Mr O’Brien’s partner, so that he could take their child back to Australia, where he had previously lived.
He told gardai that Mr O’Brien had brought a gun to his house for this purpose on the evening of the 15th but that he didn’t want to do it.
He said that a scuffle ensued when Mr O’Brien suggested he make it look like a sexual assault, that the gun fell, they both tried to get it, but that he got to it first and shot his friend.
He said that he then panicked, ‘chopped him into pieces’ with a chainsaw Mr O’Brien had lent him, put his torso into Mr O’Brien’s suitcase and dumped it in the Grand Canal. The remains were later found in a stretch of the canal in Co Kildare.
Wells told gardai that he later broke up the gun he used to shoot Mr O’Brien and dumped its pieces in the River Liffey around Lucan, south Dublin. But no trace of the gun was ever found.
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