A horse was the guest of honor in a Dublin pub at the wake of a well-known drug offender who had been shot dead.

Dealer Noel Deans (27) was gunned down on January 16 in Coolock in Dublin, a high crime area.

He was leaving his local pub when he was shot. Though he had a criminal record, he was not believed to be a major dealer, and the reason for the shooting was said to be that he owed $800 dollars to a major crime figure

The dead man owned several horses and one of them was brought to the wake in a local pub as the guest of honor.

However, a number of his relatives and criminal associates began to drink heavily and the horse had to be removed as police were called.

When police arrived a violent confrontation took place between the family mourners and cops.

One young policewoman was struck on the head by a bottle, but she was not seriously injured.

Deans had a police record since he was 14, including cocaine dealing, assault and attempting to run over a policeman.