Solved case · 2008
Also known as Killing of Andrew Burns · Andrew Burns's murder
The short answer
Andrew Burns, a man from Strabane, County Tyrone, was shot dead in a chapel carpark at Doneyloop, County Donegal, in February 2008, and one man was later convicted of his murder.
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Suggest coverage for Murder of Andrew BurnsAndrew Burns, born around 1980, was a native of Strabane, a town in the north-west of County Tyrone, and a member of the Real IRA. On 12 February 2008, he was shot dead in East Donegal. At the time of his death, Burns was regarded as the first victim of a Republican terrorist murder in Northern Ireland in six years.
Burns was killed by Óglaigh na hÉireann, a Continuity IRA splinter group. He died in the carpark beside the chapel at Doneyloop, a small hamlet in the east of County Donegal that lies between Clady and Castlefin and is sometimes rendered as Donnyloop. Before the killing, Burns had been told that he was required to take part in an IRA operation whose stated intention was to target a Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) officer said to be in a relationship with a woman in the area. When he arrived at Doneyloop, however, Burns was met not by fellow operatives but by members of Óglaigh na hÉireann, the rival faction that had drawn him there under a false pretext.
Martin Kelly drove Burns the short distance from Strabane to the Doneyloop carpark. Once there, a gunman approached Burns, but the weapon initially jammed. Burns attempted to run toward the church and was shot as he fled. He died at the scene.
The killing was investigated as a murder, and the inquiry led to the prosecution of Martin Kelly. Kelly, who was then aged 37 and lived on Barrack Street in Strabane, worked as a bus driver. In December 2011 he was found guilty of Burns's murder and sentenced to life in prison, having driven Burns from Strabane to nearby Doneyloop, where Burns was shot dead.
The investigation continued in the years that followed. In May 2026, a woman in her 60s was arrested in connection with the murder.
Andrew Burns is shot dead in the carpark beside the chapel at Doneyloop, County Donegal.
Martin Kelly is found guilty of Burns's murder and sentenced to life in prison.
A woman in her 60s is arrested in connection with the murder.
Victims first. Every legal label is set from public records and court outcomes, not from the prose.
Member of the Real IRA from Strabane, County Tyrone; shot dead at Doneyloop, County Donegal, on 12 February 2008.[3]
Bus driver of Barrack Street, Strabane; found guilty of Andrew Burns's murder in December 2011 and sentenced to life imprisonment; drove Burns from Strabane to Doneyloop.[3]
From the record
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