David Alexander Mulholland ( 5 October 1938 &ndash; 10 December 2003 ) was a Northern Irish loyalist paramilitary , known to the security forces for his alleged involvement in bombing attacks . He was a member of the Ulster Volunteer Force 's Mid-Ulster Brigade and was a prime suspect in the 1974 Dublin car bombings . He was named as the driver of the first of the three car bombs which exploded minutes apart in the city centre of Dublin on 17 May 1974 and left a total of 26 people dead and almost 300 injured . He was identified from police file photographs by three separate eyewitnesses during the investigation into the bombings by the Garda Síochána . According to journalist Joe Tiernan , he was offered immunity from prosecution by the Gardaí in exchange for information on his accomplices
1974 Dublin car bombings
Dublin and Monaghan bombings
David Alexander Mulholland