Murder investigation leads police to Dublin
Published 6 Feb 2012 15:00
AN investigation into the murder of a drug dealer who was shot dead in cold blood more than 10 years ago, has led detectives to Ireland.
Mark Connor, 30, of Norfolk Avenue, Slough, was found dead in a flat in Kilburn, north London, in February 2001, in what police called a gangland-style hit.
Little is known about the events leading up to Mr Connor's murder, but police said he was shot "execution style" and put in a bath full of water.
The investigation into his murder has been reviewed by cold-case detectives, who believe the key to solving the crime lies in the Dublin area, a police source from the Irish capital has revealed.
Mr Connor was one of the biggest drug dealers in west Dublin before he moved to London in the 1990s.
It is believed he was involved in smuggling drugs with Liverpool-based Curtis Warren, who is now serving 13 years for trafficking cocaine.
Mr Connor, who owned three homes in England and was involved in cigarette smuggling, was also suspected of working with a notorious west Dublin gang in flooding the capital with drugs from the UK.
The scale of Mr Connor's network was revealed when a man was jailed in 1999 for laundering cash owned by the dealer.
Detectives in Dublin believe Mr Connor's killing was a gangland execution which may be connected to another murder. Mr Connor was shot in the back of the head and had six other wounds to the back and side of his head caused by a blunt instrument.
In a previous interview in 2006, Mr Connor's mother Mary appealed for information about the murder.
Speaking from her Ballyfermot home, she said: "No-one deserves to die the way my Mark died. He was shot and left for days in a bath. Even the police said he had a horrible death.
"I hope there's someone out there who has a conscience."
Before his murder, Mr Connor lived in Slough, with his girlfriend Amanda Joyce, 38. He was last seen leaving his Slough home on February 11, 2001, claiming he had "business to attend to".
Ms Joyce discovered the body after visiting the flat. She burnt documents relating to fraud and walked away from the scene with two cheques worth £17,500.
She was given a 12-month conditional discharge for perverting the course of justice having admitted she interfered with the scene before contacting police.
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