Northern Ireland: Man shot dead in County Down

Police at scene of shooting near petrol station in Waringstown

Officers seal off garage forecourt on Main Street on Monday night (PA)

A man has been shot dead near a petrol station forecourt in County Down, Northern Ireland, according to reports.

The shooting took place on Main Street in the village of Waringstown at around 9pm on Monday.

Officers from the Police Service of Northern Ireland are at the scene and the road was closed.

Carla Lockhart, a Democratic Unionist Part (DUP) assembly member, urged anyone with information to come forward.

“I would ask people to give the police the time and space to do their investigation,” she tweeted. “My thoughts and prayers are with the family affected by this incident. Anyone with information please let the police know on 101 number.”

Her fellow assembly member, Dolores Kelly of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) said the local community was “in shock” after the “violent murder”.

“This is a quiet, settled village and people are appalled that violence has been brought on to their streets,” she said. ”I would appeal to anyone who saw or heard anything suspicious in the area at around 10pm this evening to come forward and assist police with their investigation.”

It is believed that the victim was a loyalist.

The shooting came less than 24-hours after a bomb exploded in County Fermanagh.

Police said Army bomb-disposal officers and police had searched the area over the weekend after receiving reports of a suspect device in Wattle Bridge, close to Newtownbutler and the border with the Republic of Ireland.

That item was ultimately declared a hoax, but another device exploded close-by when the bomb-disposal team attended to review the scene.

The PSNI said it appeared to be a deliberate attempt to lure officers to the area to be murdered.

“Although this device was intended to kill police and army personnel the fact that it was placed on a main road the result could well have been devastating for anyone in the immediate vicinity,” said deputy chief constable Stephen Martin.

“This attack was indiscriminate and reckless and, whilst there is no doubt in my mind that police responding to this call were the target, the reality is that anyone could have been caught up in the explosion.

“We are extremely fortunate that the actions of officers who were first on scene meant that there was not serious injury or death.”