Gardai have confirmed that a body found in the Comeragh Mountains in July is that of Martin Nolan, a Waterford drugs dealer who had been missing for a year.
A murder investigation has been under way since July, when the body was found near a popular walking trail at Clondonnell, about five miles from Rathgormack, Co Waterford.
Identification of the body was not confirmed until this week, when gardai received the results of forensic tests carried out in Britain. A fresh appeal for information about the murder was issued yesterday.
Mr Nolan (34) was regarded as a major drug-supplier. While he had seven convictions for possession, he had never been sentenced for having drugs for supply.
He did face such a charge last November, however, when he was to appear at Waterford Circuit Court accused of having several thousand pounds worth of cannabis and ecstasy for sale.
A few days before he was due in court, however, he disappeared. Foresters came across a blood-stained scene at Ballygarron Wood, near Waterford Regional Airport, on November 10th last year, the same day Mr Nolan's family reported him missing. DNA tests subsequently established that the blood was his.
Gardai are at a loss to know why Mr Nolan was killed. Although he had no visible means of support, a Garda source said he was wealthy and was unlikely to have run up any drug debts he was unable to pay. ???????????i had been pursing Nolan for at least a decade but say he was extremely careful not to keep large amounts of drugs in his possession.
The source said Mr Nolan began dealing in drugs in the mid to late 1980s, rising "from small beginnings to being one of the major dealers in the country".
To date, investigations have focused on the local drugs scene in Waterford, and there is no evidence that outside interests were involved. A large number of people have been questioned in connection with the case, but so far no one has been charged.
Supt John Howard of Tramore yesterday appealed for anyone with information relating to events at either Ballygarron Wood or Clondonnell to contact Waterford Garda station at (051) 874888, Tramore station at (051) 381333 or the Garda confidential line at 1800 666111.
