The grave of Real IRA Dublin leader Alan Ryan was desecrated overnight, heightening tensions ahead of a memorial march and ceremony to mark the first anniversary of his death.
Ryan was shot dead by a masked gunman close to his home, while walking with two other men at Clongriffin in north Dublin last year.
More than 300 gardai including the Emergency Response Unit and sections of the riot squad are on standby ahead of the memorial march to Ryan's grave this afternoon
Red spray paint was used to vandalise the grave with the insult “Rat Scum” painted on the headstone. Other family keepsakes and small memorials were also defaced.
The attack on his grave at Balgriffin cemetery was discovered by members of Mr Ryan’s family who immediately began a clean up ahead of the ceremony.
In the aftermath of Ryan's murder tensions escalated as his associates swore to avenge his death.
The two leaders of a notorious drug gang, who supporters of Alan Ryan believe organised the murder, left the country soon afterwards.
