Jim Donegan: St Mary's Grammar School to reopen after murder

Jim Donegan was shot dead as he waited to pick his son up from school

A school in west Belfast that closed after the murder of a pupil's parent is to reopen later.

Jim Donegan, 43, was shot in his car as he waited for his 13-year-old son near St Mary's Grammar School on Tuesday.

In a message to pupils and parents, the school said that a team of support staff would be available on Thursday for anyone who needed help or advice.

Two men, aged 49 and 51, were arrested after police carried out searches in west Belfast on Wednesday night.

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Det Ch Insp Peter Montgomery of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) said significant information about what happened had been received from people in west Belfast but more was needed.

"If you are concerned about giving your evidence in court, please come forward and tell me what you know," he said.

"I will consider all measures I possibly can to put that information in front of a court."

The gunman was filmed on CCTV walking to the scene and later running from it.

Police released the footage but the images are grainy and he is not easy to identify.

The victim was a husband, a father to two sons and a stepfather, said Det Ch Insp Montgomery.

The shooter was wearing a hi-vis yellow jacket with "Security" printed on the back and was carrying a dark bag.

Police believe the gun was in the bag. He walked from a lane, passing by parents and children.

Police want to speak to anyone who saw the victim's red Porsche shortly before the shooting

After the murder, he ran back up Glen Road and along the lane on to Clonelly Avenue.

The detective thanked people who had helped them and appealed for more information or dashcam footage.

Speaking on Wednesday morning, the school's interim principal Fiona Crookes said pupils "had to walk past the scene" of the shooting.

"Our primary concern at that stage was that they wouldn't see what we had to see," she said.

Mr Donegan's son soon became "our priority" as he walked down the lane to meet his father, she added.