THE gunman who shot two men in Tallaght on Friday night was dressed as a homeless person and opened fire after his victims stopped their car to allow him cross the street.

The two men were in a car on Fernwood Avenue at around 8pm when the gunman walked out into the road.

The driver of the car stopped and signaled for the man to cross. He then walked up to the car and opened fire on the driver and his passenger through the windscreen. It is believed he fired five shots from a revolver. Both men were shot in the arm and one of them was also wounded in the chest. The gunman then fled on foot through some bushes where gardaí believe a getaway car was waiting.

The two victims are men in their 30s and are known to gardaí. They managed to drive their car to Tallaght garda station. They gave officers a brief statement before they were taken to hospital and told gardaí they believed the man who shot was homeless and were shocked when he opened fire. The men's injuries are not thought to be serious.

Detectives are this weekend trying to establish a motive for the shooting.