A 36-year-old man who was killed in a weekend car crash had been previously jailed for his role in a botched dissident bomb-attack.
The victim, named as Paul Donnelly, died following a two car collision on Magheraknock Road in Ballynahinch, Co Down on Saturday.
A five-year-old girl also injured in the collision, and remains in hospital, is reported to have been travelling in the same car - a Ford Focus.
A 32-year-old man who was driving a Vauxhall Vectra involved in the collision was last night in a stable condition in Belfast's Royal Victoria Hospital. The child is in the Royal Victoria Hospital for Sick Children and was last night in a stable condition.
Donnelly, from Collinview in the Springfield area of west Belfast, was shot by police in 2002 when he attempted to bomb the old car tax office in Belfast's Upper Queen Street.
According to evidence given during his trial, police and army watched the entire operation and intercepted Donnelly at the junction of Howard Street and Fisherwick Place. He was shot and wounded by police as he tried to escape. He was jailed and, under the remission rules, released from prison after serving six years of his sentence.
In Ballynahinch, the road was closed until yesterday afternoon while police from two districts - Down and Lisburn - along with colleagues from PSNI Air Support investigated the scene.
A man living nearby said the police helicopter had been up for most of the nights and appeared to be scanning surrounding fields.
A medic called David Fox said he was one of those first on the scene before the emergency crews arrived.
"Once (the emergency services) they did (arrive) everyone was awesome and worked as a team so effectively in such awful circumstances," he said.
"I'd like to say thank you for all of the hard work undertaken by the Fire Service, PSNI and the NIAS as well as the two doctors that stopped to help."
SDLP councillor Terry Andrews said the news had shocked everyone in the town.
"My heart goes out to the family and friends of the deceased and those in hospital. It is very sad and poignant, especially in the run up to Christmas," he said.
"My thoughts and prayers are with them."
Police have said they want to speak to anyone who saw the Vauxhall Vectra and Ford Focus cars before the collision or came across the crash scene in the immediate aftermath.
In March a 16-year-old girl was left in a critical condition in hopsital after a one-vehicle crash on a Sunday morning on the same road.
