Ballymun feud hit-&-run was planned using stolen car to target victim, 28, critical with crushed pelvis & spine injuries

GARDAI believe a car was stolen to be specifically used in the targeted hit-and-run in north Dublin that left a man with a crushed pelvis and suspected spinal injuries.

The 28-year-old victim remains in critical condition after he was mowed down whilst cycling his bike and dragged underneath the black Volkswagen Passat for around 100 metres on Shangan Road, Ballymun, on Tuesday morning.

Detectives have linked the incident to the ongoing Ballymun feud, where there has been escalating violence since the murder of Kevin Kelly, aged in his early 20s, a year ago.

The suspect vehicle fled the scene and was set alight a five-minute drive away. It was later recovered by investigators.

Gardai have established the vehicle had been stolen in the days before outside Dublin.

A source said: “The fact the car had been stolen and then used just days later indicates that there was planning put into this and it wasn’t spur of the moment.

“The injured man in this case regularly took that route cycling and at that time too.

“There have been dangerous incidents over the last few months but the fact someone here has been severely injured here heightens tensions even more.”

The victim also suffered injuries to his lungs and liver. He remains in the Mater Hospital fighting for his life.

The man, who had no involvement in the attack and killing of Kelly, is well-known to gardai with over 70 convictions, including for assault, violent disorder and possession of a weapon.

Local People Before Profit Councillor Conor Reddy told us: “Shocking isn’t the word anymore because it’s perfectly predictable.

“I’ve been speaking on this lots of times over the last few months and I’ve said at each point that someone was going to be killed or seriously injured. There is a constant back and forth and tit for tat.

“It’s not a low level of violence, it’s quite a high level of violence – grenades are involved, automatic weapons, and firebombing of houses.”

Gardai in Ballymun say a White Volvo XC90 SUV with a 231-D registration was in the area at the time and are appealing for anyone who knows its whereabouts to come forward.

The feud kicked off between two rival groups after Kevin Kelly, 20, was hit by a car on Balbutcher Lane on June 28, 2025 and died.

Gardai believe the driver deliberately drove into him and are treating it as murder.

The dispute has continued to escalate since. Last month a house was burnt out days after a grenade attack in which two men dropped the device, which then exploded on a residential street.

In April, a child fired a gun that a criminal linked to the feud had discarded in a bush.

Gardai say no arrests have been made in connection with the latest incident.