Man arrested on suspicion of murder after 83-year-old shot dead in Kerry home

Grandfather and father-of-five Patrick 'Paddy' O'Mahony Snr (83) is understood to have died from a single gunshot wound to the chest - with the weapon used believed to have been either a rifle or pistol.

Mr O'Mahony - a founding member of An Riocht Gun Club - was discovered lying on the floor at his Castlemaine home yesterday morning.

He was discovered by a hunting enthusiast who had travelled to Kerry to use the Riocht range and had called to the property to chat with Mr O'Mahony.

When he was examined, it was apparent that Mr O'Mahony had suffered a single gunshot wound to his chest.

A man in his 60s was arrested by investigating gardaí earlier today. He is currently detained under section 50 of the Criminal Justice Act, 2007, at a Garda Station in County Kerry.

Ballistic tests will now be conducted to determine the precise calibre and weapon used in the fatal shooting.

Mr O'Mahony's body was taken to University Hospital Kerry (UHK) where a full post-mortem examination was being conducted today by Assistant State Pathologist Dr Margaret Bolster.

Mr O’Mahony was last seen some 24 hours before his body was discovered.

His beloved wife, Elisabeth 'Lillie' died last November and he was one of the most respected figures within Ireland's hunting and shooting sector.

As well as being an experienced gunsmith, he was also a firearms dealer and collector.

Immediately after Mr O'Mahony's death, gardaí searched his property given that he had a number of powerful weapons in his care.

These were in locked and armoured gun safes with a number of high-powered weapons located in a specially built concrete bunker.

It is understood that no weapons were either missing or unaccounted for.

The death shocked the tightknit Castlemaine community.

Today's News in 90 Seconds - February 26th

Parish Moderator Fr Danny Broderick said the news had "a terrible impact" on the area.

"This is a gentle, quiet community of lovely, decent people," he said.

"So to hear something like this is going to create awful vibrations all over the place. To die of natural causes in old age or through sickness is one thing but for this to happen is terrible."

"All we can do is our best to support the family, be with them and stay with them. I know they will have wonderful friends and neighbours supporting them today."

Mr O'Mahony founded An Riocht gun club with a linked shooting range located six kilometres from Castlemaine.

Over 100 hunting and shooting enthusiasts are members of the club.

While Mr O'Mahony had effectively retired from the family business over recent years, he remained a keen shooting enthusiast and his expertise were widely sought on weapon repairs and sales.

The Kerry range boasts two 50m shooting areas and is fully authorised by both the Garda and the National Association of Regional Game Councils (NARGC).

However, gardaí had attempted to take a number of powerful semi-automatic guns away from Mr O'Mahony in 2010.

They argued before Killorglin District Court that such weapons were too powerful for civilian use and that the possession of these made Mr O'Mahony a potential Tiger kidnapping target.

The court heard that Mr O'Mahony Snr was the owner of a .22 Colt Pistol; .45 Colt Revolver; .45 Colt 1911 Gold Cup Pistol and a 762 Mauser Pistol, dating back to 1876 and similar to that used by Eamon De Valera.

He also had a number of hunting rifles.

Mr O'Mahony was allowed to retain the weapons after Killorglin District Court heard that he had sufficient security measures in place, including an underground concrete bunker.

When queried about the reason for his keeping such firearms Mr O'Mahony told the court in 2010: "Why do you think I built a range for €134,000 and a shop for nearly the same. It's our hobby and our sport, no other reason and I'm on oath?"

The court heard that Mr O'Mahony had an impeccable record, was a stalwart member of the Kerry community, was a successful businessman and had previously been granted licenses for all the weapons involved.

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Local Fianna Fáil Councillor Michael O’Shea has expressed his condolences to the O’Mahony family.

“Everybody knew the family, they’re a lovely family, an extremely hard-working family, a family that are involved in a lot of social and community events, and everybody at this given time supports them and wants to give them every assistance they can,” Cllr O’Shea told The Kerryman.