Image copyright PACEMAKER

The murder of a man in Carrickfergus, County Antrim, may be linked to an assault outside his home five days before his death, police have said.

The body of Glenn Quinn, 47, was found in Ashleigh Park in the Woodburn area on 4 January.

Police have said his murder may be connected to a separate assault on Mr Quinn outside his home on 29 December.

He was not injured in that attack. Three people arrested over the murder have been released on police bail.

Det Supt Jason Murphy said police became aware that Mr Quinn may have been killed after a friend raised concerns about his safety.

The detective said Mr Quinn's death was thought to have been caused by "blunt force trauma".

Speaking about the earlier attack in December, Det Supt Murphy told BBC Radio Ulster's Good Morning Ulster programme: "As a result of that assault, Glen wasn't injured as such... but became very frightened.

"A line of inquiry we are trying to follow was that Glenn's murder may be related to that assault."

Image copyright PAcemaker Image caption Investigators in forensic suits examined the scene of Mr Quinn's death

Two men, aged 38 and 39, and a woman aged 47, earlier arrested in connection with Mr Quinn's death, were rearrested on suspicion of murder on Monday night.

They were later released on police bail pending further enquiries. Police said forensic examinations and further investigations were ongoing.

Rumour and speculation

In an earlier statement, Det Supt Jason Murphy said he was aware of speculation circulating that the death "is in some way related to the activities of South East Antrim UDA".

"The investigation remains at a very early stage and it is not yet possible to be definitive about the motivation for this man's murder but the potential for it to be linked to those associated with paramilitary organisations will form part of our investigation," he said.

"Rumour and speculation within the community is likely to be unhelpful as we seek to establish the circumstances surrounding this man's death and I would appeal to the community to contact us."