Shot pal of The Don out of coma after liver infection

Notorious hardman Brian O'Reilly (45) is expected to be finally released from Beaumont Hospital 
in the coming days after he survived an attempt on his life on Friday, June 13.

A source told the Herald: "O'Reilly developed severe complications in hospital after he was shot and even ended up in a coma in intensive 
care because of complications to his liver.

"For a number of days it was touch and go whether he would survive, but everything is looking very much better for him now and he should be ok."

O'Reilly was shot as he sat in his car outside Platinum Gym in Balbriggan at around 11am on the morning, sustaining bullet wounds to his side and arm.

It was the second time O'Reilly has been the target of a gun attack, after being shot in Bettystown in August 2010.

Originally from Ballymun, O'Reilly lives in Laytown, Co Meath. In the latest attempt on O'Reilly's life, gardai said that the gunman is believed to have dark hair and left the scene of the shooting in a white car, which was either a Nissan 200 SX or a Toyota Supra.

SOURCES

Unlike the first attempt on his life, which was organised by the Real IRA faction led by murdered terror chief Alan Ryan, sources say that the chief suspects for shooting O'Reilly last month are a notorious crime gang from Dublin's north inner city.

This mob had very close links to a Finglas criminal who gardai believe was murdered on the orders of O' Reilly's pal Eamon Dunne in November 2009 after a long standing dispute.

The 2009 victim was David Thomas (42) who was shot in the face outside a Finglas pub.

A post mortem found Thomas had been shot twice in the head, with one bullet penetrating his brain.

In October 2000, Thomas was cleared of the shotgun murder of Brian O'Reilly's older brother Eamon during a Finglas pub brawl in 1998.

kfoy@herald.ie