http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/new...n-31201230.html

Five kilograms of explosives found by farmer this afternoon.

An Army Bomb Disposal Team detonated five kilograms of commercial explosives found by a farmer outside a Galway village this afternoon.

The farmer excavated the material whilst carrying out drainage on a piece of land outside Leenaun Co Galway.
The Defence Forces deployed the Army Bomb Disposal Team in response to a request from gardai.
The team arrived on scene at 12.30 pm and safely detonated the explosives, which were estimated to be at least 50 years old.
The scene was declared safe at 2.00 pm.
Anyone who finds such materials is advised to keep a safe distance and inform gardai.
Online Editors

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/...-armed-struggle

Irish republican socialists call on Real IRA to end 'armed struggle'

Internal paper from political wing of Irish group that assassinated Airey Neave is made public, calling armed republican actions ‘self-defeating’

An internal document from the political wing of the Irish terror group that assassinated one of Margaret Thatcher’s closest allies calling on the Real IRA, also known as New IRA, and other dissident republicans to end their “armed struggle” has been made public.

The Irish Republican Socialist party discussion paper describes the hardline republicans’ ongoing armed campaigns as a “self-defeating dynamic”.

The IRSP are the political allies of the Irish National Liberation Army, which in 1979 exploded a booby trap bomb under the car belonging to the Conservative party’s Northern Ireland spokesman and second world war hero Airey Neave in Westminster. The Colditz escapee’s murder in the House of Commons car park catapulted the INLA, then a small splinter organisation, into international infamy. Neave, a strong supporter of unionism, was a close adviser and personal friend to Thatcher, who was elected prime minister a few months after his death.

The intervention in the debate over the future of republican armed struggle is significant because dissidents opposed to the peace process remain on friendly terms with and respect many IRSP and INLA veterans.

In its discussion paper, the IRSP refers to the continued New IRA, Continuity IRA and Óghlaigh na hÉireann: “Sporadic armed actions are not working; they are placing zero pressure upon either the British/Stormont or Free State regimes nor upon the capitalist economic systems which underwrite all of those states.”

Former INLA hunger striker Willie Gallagher said he hoped that the publication of the document on the republican website The Pensive Quill would add to the debate about the efficacy of ”armed struggle”.

Gallagher said: “We are hoping that at the very least the paper will produce some discussion among all the anti-Good Friday Agreement republican family. It’s the first time it’s been made public and no longer behind closed doors ... the debate can be conducted in a comradely fashion.”

In their document, the IRSP claim the continued campaigns of violence are now counterproductive.

The republican socialist movement said the infrequent attacks on police, army and some symbolic targets are simply “...bolstering the budgets of British military intelligence and handing a monthly propaganda victory to those who wish to make partition, capitalism, austerity and overt security measures appear to the general public as the rational state of affairs in Ireland; rational in comparison to actions which only achieve a temporary sense of personal achievement for the individuals involved and their supporters on the ground.”

The wreckage of a car hit by an INLA bomb killing the Tory spokesman on Northern Ireland, Airey Neave, in 1979. Facebook Twitter Pinterest
The wreckage of a car hit by an INLA bomb killing the Tory spokesman on Northern Ireland, Airey Neave, in 1979. Photograph: Central Press/Getty Images
The continuation of the armed campaigns were also hampering the growth of a broad-based leftwing republican alternative to Sinn Féin, the IRSP said.

“Just as advocates of current armed actions assert that they have a right to bear arms in the name of Irish freedom; in the spirit of comradeship we must urge them to consider what duties come with that right. Not least the duty to consider the logistical limitations which come with practicing armed struggle perpetually in a woefully unsuitable environment. And the very real costs of that decision, both to you personally and to the cause of building a capable revolutionary momentum, which the Irish people so dearly need and deserve,” the IRSP document continues.

It noted the increasing number of New IRA, CIRA and ONH members that were arrested and imprisoned in thwarted terror attacks.

“The imprisonment of so many political activists has been a godsend to the state and to opponents of popular political struggle in Ireland and not only in terms of bodies lost on the ground.
“In addition to locking up scores of republicans; Britain has seized the opportunity to tie down remaining activists in an endless cycle of prison-based campaigns; ensuring that the time, resources and energies of militantly minded republicans are eternally deflected from the vital task of building a viable street-based alternative to the corrupt political and economic setup which now exists in Ireland.”

This is the latest critique of armed struggle within the broad-based and often factional wing of republicanism that opposes the Good Friday Agreement and Sinn Féin’s participation in the devolved power-sharing executive in Belfast funded by the UK treasury.

In 2014 Gerard Hodgins, a former Provisional IRA hunger striker and now one of Sinn Féin’s harshest critics in West Belfast, called on the dissident groups to declare ceasefires. Hodgins said that the British state had the surveillance technology to watch the armed organisations “24/7” and that the conditions were not right for continuing armed campaigns.

Earlier this year Hodgins’ warning was echoed by the hardline Irish-American critic of the peace process Martin Galvin, whom the Thatcher government once banned from Northern Ireland in the 1980s.

The Pensive Quill is run by former IRA prisoner Anthony McIntyre. It gives a voice to republicans and republican socialists opposed to Sinn Féin’s peace strategy and opposes any return to violence.

http://www.sundayworld.com/news/crimedesk/cops-foil-mr-big-bid-to-kill-ryan-brother

Cops believe to have foiled Mr Big bid to kill Alan Ryan's brother.

GARDAI may have foiled an assassination attempt on one of Alan Ryan’s brothers.

Sources said the Dublin criminal known as ‘Mr Big’ was believed to have been on his way to carry out a hit last month when gardai
attempted to stop him in a car.

Gardai recognised Mr Big and went to pull him over. However, he sped off and managed to get away.

Gardai suspect there was a weapon in the car and he may have been on the way to carry out a hit attempt on Ryan.


“The fact he sped off shows he had something to hide,” said a source.

Mr Big is suspected of ordering the hit on Alan Ryan in September 2012 after the Real IRA leader demanded protection money from his gang.

He has since targeted other relatives and associates of Ryan, including Daragh Evans and Derek Nolan.

Mr Big pulled a gun on Evans in Dolphin’s Barn in March last year. Evans was not injured as no shots were fired, but he fled Dublin for a time after the incident.

Both Evans and Vinny Ryan were acquitted of possession of an AKM assault rifle and Webley-make revolver MkV1 on the day drugs kingpin Micka Kelly was shot dead in Dublin in 2011.

Meanwhile, lower-level criminals in Mr Big’s network are at loggerheads with each other following two gun attacks.

A drug dealer from Artane shot up the north Dublin home of a 25-year-old armed robber and drug dealer at Christmas time.


Gardai subsequently received intelligence that there was a threat on the life of the Artane man as a result of the attack.

Gardai arrested two young thugs from the north inner city who were watching the dealer’s home around two months ago.

The men were on a motorcycle and were eventually arrested by gardai. It is believed they may have dumped a firearm before they were apprehended.

In recent weeks the family home of the drug dealer was shot at by the armed robber in a revenge attack.

“There is serious tension with all this at the moment,” said a source.


“The people involved have been warned their lives are in danger.”

The 25-year-old armed robber is the prime suspect in carrying out a cash-in-transit robbery in Santry on April 23.

They fled the scene on foot with a cash box before speeding away in a car. However, gardai tracked down the cash box which had been fitted with a GPS system which led them to its location. All the cash was recovered.

Gardai suspect the second man involved in the armed robbery is a 20-year-old from Artane who has close connection with a senior member of Mr Big’s crew originally from the Coolock area but now living in Meath.

The Coolock man’s brother was caught with almost €2m worth of cannabis and ecstasy in north county Dublin in 2013.

Mr Big was on his way to the house where the drugs were, but avoided arrest as gardai had moved in before he arrived.

Both sides involved in the feud are being supplied with drugs from Mr Big’s crime gang.


“These would be the lower echelons of that crime network, but just because they’re being supplied by the same gang doesn’t mean they can’t be at odds with each other,” said a source.

The 25-year-old armed robber has links to two criminal brothers from the Kilmore area who are extremely close to Mr Big.

“There are a lot of connections between the two feuding sides but Mr Big seems happy enough to leave them at it. He hasn’t shown any sign of trying to resolve the dispute

http://www.sundayworld.com/news/10k-hit-enemy-paid-big-money-to-have-jock-davison-killed

£10k HIT: Enemy paid big money to have Jock Davison killed.

Gunned-down ex-Provo boss Gerard ‘Jock’ Davison died with a £10,000 price on his head.

The Sunday World can reveal the man who pulled the trigger on the 47-year-old had been offered a £10k bounty to take down the life-long republican to settle an old score.

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According to reliable republican sources, a long-standing enemy of Jock Davison approached the shooter with a take-it-or-leave it offer several months ago after a heated confrontation with the veteran IRA man.

Well-placed sources say both the suspected hitman and the man who ordered the blood-drenched daylight assassination have had family members murdered by the Provisional IRA.

However, while one of the men involved was consumed with hatred and fuelled by revenge, the other was driven simply by greed.

“There is no way in the world the gunman would have done it without cash being handed over, that’s not his style. He is an absolute flea, one of his family members was shot dead by the IRA but he couldn’t give a shit about that, all he saw was an opportunity to make a few quid and be the one who took out Jock Davison,” said one source.

“Jock had enemies, there were plenty of people out there who had threatened to kill him over the years but all the evidence points to these two guys, one wanted him dead but couldn’t pull the trigger, didn’t have the balls to do it, while the other was happy to do it for the right price.

“The hatred just bubbled over. Add to the fact that Jock had been giving drug dealers well known to both of them a hard time, they thought ‘f*** it, let’s do him’,” the source said.
The two men referred to have also been identified as the chief suspects by those close to Davison and who are struggling to come to terms with the brazen attack which many believed could or would never happen.

“Tensions have been high, there is no denying that, how could they not be? People are in shock,” said our source, “the worry is that when the shock turns to anger what happens then? There is always a potential for future violence and by the very nature of the killing that will remain a possibility.

“The immediate aim is to give Jock a good send-off and then look after his loved ones, help them come to terms with their loss. What happens after that nobody knows.”

The Sunday World can reveal that the gun used in the shocking slaying is believed to still be in the Markets area, stashed away during the chaos that followed the murder.

The gunman had previously used the gun, which was bought by criminal elements, to carry out punishment attacks against those who have crossed local drug dealers, however, the murder of Jock Davison is his first kill.

Both of those believed to be involved are from the East Belfast area and have connections to a drug dealing gang that consists of two brothers. They are both regular drug users, the gunman starting when he was just 12.

It is reported that their drug gang connections would have brought them to Davison’s attention and he was determined to make life as difficult as possible for drug dealers operating in his area.

Jock Davison was blasted in the head and body with a Glock handgun as he made his way to work in the Markets area of Belfast last Tuesday morning.

Just before 9.15am the former IRA chief was ambushed in what has been described as a well-planned attack.

The gunman did not hesitate, riddling his target with bullets as passers-by, including school children, screamed and ran for cover.

His son Gerard was a short distance from his father when he was brutally murdered, his heartbreaking screams and cries ‘daddy, daddy, that’s my daddy’ echoed over Welsh Street.

Unfazed by the scene of carnage he had created, the gunman, who is in his late 20s, calmly handed his weapon to an accomplice who, according to sources, had the role of getting rid of the weapon while the killer fled the scene on foot to a nearby safe house where he removed and disposed of his clothing.

The Sunday World has been informed that the killer then went to bed as if it was just a normal day as the family of Jock Davison, just a short distance away, tried desperately to reach him as he lay on the street.

There was fevered speculation as to who may have been responsible for the killing, with the finger of blame being pointed

variously at drug gangs and elements within the dissident groups.

Senior republicans Colin Duffy, Alex McCrory (pictured left) and Harry Fitzsimons sent a message of sympathy from Maghaberry Prison where they are on remand awaiting trial on a series of terrorist charges in connection with dissident activity.

Republican Network for Unity has also issued a statement expressing sympathy for the Davison family.

Three men have been questioned in connection with the shooting but have all been released without charge.

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/u...e-31169991.html

Twenty years after the terrorist ceasefires, but dissident gunmen still roam streets and alleyways of Lurgan estate.

BY DAVID YOUNG – 25 APRIL 2015

Over 20 years after the paramilitary ceasefires, two masked gunmen strut and preen on the streets of a Northern Ireland housing estate, waving their weapons around with apparent impunity .

The police were nowhere to be seen, according to local people.

This is the savage reality of Lurgan's Kilwilkie estate in 2015.

Political representatives reacted with fury yesterday after these images of armed republican dissidents patrolling the streeets emerged on social media.

Local councillor Carla Lockhart condemned the dissident stunt, and called on the police to move swiftly to deal with the swaggering gunmen.

"It's utterly scandalous that this type of behaviour is still going on -20 years after the ceasefires.

"The police need to act.

"These people were running around the estate like vigilantes with guns acting as if they owned the place.

"This cannot be allowed to continue."

There were also unconfirmed reports of shots being fired during the show of strength, apparently to indicate that the guns were real and not replicas.

Upper Bann DUP candidate David Simpson said the police must investigate dissident republican "patrols" in Lurgan

"It is clear that dissident republicans are attempting to exert some level of control within Lurgan, and posts on social media within the last 24 hours include pictures of armed and masked men purportedly 'patrolling' in Lurgan," he said.

"The offending post has been reported to Facebook for review as it is clearly promoting an illegal terrorist organisation.

"However, the police must investigate whether such dissident terrorist 'patrols' are taking place.

"The entire community must take a stand against such organisations and their attempt to get a grip on communities right across Northern Ireland."

The chilling images of the terrorists appeared on a Facebook page belonging to Republican Sinn Fein.

The caption on the pictures described the images as "Volunteers... patrolling the streets of Lurgan on the lookout for England's armed colonial police and unvercover British soldiers who are operating unwantedly across occupied Ireland."

Mr Simpson also called on all candidates for the Upper Bann parliamentary seat to clearly condemn the presence of masked gunmen on the streets.

The PSNI said it was moving to track down those behind the incident.

Superintendent David Moore, district commander for Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon said: "Police are aware of the image that has appeared on a social media platform, and a criminal investigation is already under way.

"While it is incredibly easy for anyone to manipulate social media platforms or other features of the internet to gain some measure of publicity, when it is done in this manner it can constitute a serious criminal offence, and we have already begun the work necessary to establish the facts, and bring those responsible for criminal acts to justice.

"The contempt in which these people hold everyone in our society, their well-documented recklessness and the futility of their actions is not masked in any way by the posting of a photograph on Facebook.

"The community in Lurgan and across the whole of Northern Ireland should remember that our determination to keep people safe is greater than their determination to do people harm.

"We are more determined than ever to keep people safe by working with the community and not, as in the case of those behind this stunt, against it."

Superintendent Moore appealed for information.

"I would appeal to anyone with information about this or any other social media post of this nature to contact police immediately with what they know.

"With the full support of the public we can be ever more effective in dealing with the terrorist threat."

http://www.rte.ie/news/2015/0513/700900-garda-suspect-device/

Four arrested and suspect device recovered following garda raids.

our men have been arrested and a suspect device has been recovered as part of an investigation into dissident republican activity.

The men were detained following a number of searches in counties Louth, Dublin and Wexford today.

The offences they have been charged with include directing terrorism and membership of an unlawful organisation.

Gardaí also recovered a suspect device in Courtown, Co Wexford. The area has been cordoned off and an Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal team is on its way to the scene.

In addition, component parts for explosive devices were recovered at other locations searched and a technical examination will be carried out on them.

The investigation is ongoing.

Separately, a firearm and suspected component parts for explosives have been recovered in Co Leitrim.

The discovery was made following the search of a car at Glenfarne on the N16 (Sligo to Blacklion Rd) around 11.45am.

Two men in their 20s were arrested at the scene and are being detained at Manorhamilton Garda Station.

http://www.sundayworld.com/news/courts/three-men-court-charged-dissident-terrorist

Three men in court charged with IRA membership.

Three men have appeared before a Saturday sitting of the non-jury Special Criminal Court charged with membership of the IRA among other offences.

The men had been arrested by members of the Special Detective Unit as part of an ongoing investigation into the activities of dissident republicans.

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Séamus McGrane (60), of Little Road, Domiskin, Co Louth, was charged with membership of an unlawful organisation styling itself the Irish Republican Army, otherwise Oglaigh na hÉireann otherwise the IRA within the State between December 23 2009 and May 13 2015.

Mr McGrane was also charged with directing the activities of an unlawful organisation styling itself the Irish Republican Army, otherwise Oglaigh na hEireann, otherwise the IRA, in respect of which a suppression order had been made, within the State on dates between December 23 2009 and May 13 2015 inclusive.

Detective Sergeant Padraig Boyce, of the Special Detective Unit, told the three-judge court that he arrested Mr McGrane at Londonbridge Road, Dublin 4 on Friday May 15 2015.

Det Sgt Boyce said Mr McGrane made no reply when the charges were read to him.

When asked whether Mr McGrane was present in court, Det Sgt Boyce raised his hand and said he was the man in the black top in the dock.

Mr Justice Paul Butler, presiding at the non-jury court with Judge Alison Lindsay and Judge Flann Brennan, remanded Mr McGrane in custody until Wednesday May 20 next.

Donal O Coisdealbha (23), of Abbeyfield, Killester Dublin 15, was charged with membership of an unlawful organisation styling itself the Irish Republican Army, otherwise Oglaigh na hÉireann otherwise the IRA within the State on May 13 2015.

Mr O Coisdealbha was also charged with possession of a component part of an improvised explosive device namely a time and power unit also known as a TPU at “the personal storage locker under the control of Donal O Coisdealbha at Protector Life Sciences, National University of Ireland Maynooth, Co Kildare” under such circumstances as to give rise to a reasonable suspicion that he had not got it in his possession for a lawful purpose on May 13 2015.

Det Sgt Finbarr Hayes told the non-jury court that he arrested Mr O Coisdealbha at Irishtown Road, and he had nothing to say in reply to the charges.

When asked whether Mr O Coisdealbha was in court, Det Sgt Hayes said he was the gentleman in the dock wearing the red t-shirt.

He was remanded in custody until Wednesday May 20 next.

Solicitor Kieran Conway, for Mr O Coisdealbha, told the court that he will be applying for bail on the next occasion.

Separately, Dylan Cahill (22), of Lower Irishtown, Clonmel, Co Tipperary, was charged with membership of an unlawful organisation styling itself the Irish Republican Army, otherwise Oglaigh na hEireann, otherwise the IRA within the State on May 13 2015.

Mr Cahill was also charged with possession of .380 calibre Colt semi-automatic pistol and with possession of four rounds of .380 calibre ammunition, in circumstances as to give rise to a reasonable inference that he had not got the items in his possession for a lawful purpose at Sradrine, Glefame, Co Leitrim on May 13 2015.

Furthermore, Mr Cahill was charged with possession of two Improvised Explosive Devices commonly known as pipe bombs at Sradrine, Glenfame, County Leitrim on May 13 2015.

Detective Garda Mark Benson told the three judge court that he arrested Mr Cahill at Cluneen, Manorhamilton, Co Leitrim on Friday May 15 2015 and he made no reply to the charges.

When an application for bail on Tuesday next was proposed on Mr Cahill's behalf, solicitor Liam Mulholland, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, said Tuesday next was a bad day for the gardaí because of the visit of Prince Charles to the State.

"The gardaí are extremely busy that day," Mr Mulholland said.

When Det Gda Benson said Mr Cahill was the man sitting alone in the dock, the accused smirked.

http://www.sundayworld.com/news/crimedesk/gardai-nab-bottler-s-100k

Gardai nab Bottler’s €100k as on the run criminal flees to UK.

The notorious thug who has been listed as the number one gangland target in Ireland had more than €100,000 seized by gardai.

Derek ‘Bottler’ Devoy was in the process of moving to the UK after he was warned that the same gang who took out his brother ‘Mad’ Mickey Devoy, were after him.

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Bottler attempted to transfer the large sum to the UK in order to set up a new base, but the cash was frozen by detectives in Dublin.

The criminal moved to the UK last month after a €20,000 bounty was put on his head by associates of gang boss Greg Lynch who are suspected of shooting his brother ‘Mad’ Mickey dead last year.



Mickey Devoy

Mickey was assassinated after he was blamed for the shooting of Lynch in a packed Dublin pub which has left him scarred for life. The feud erupted over a row about a €30,000 debt.

Bottler walked free from Mountjoy Prison after serving a sentence for an attempted robbery of a post office in Balbriggan, north Dublin, and for shooting at his neighbours

It is understood that the Lynch mob had planned to kill two other brothers and had targeted window cleaner John O’Reagan who was shot dead outside a school in Ballymun.

O’Regan was blamed for stealing the car which was used in the botched hit on a Lynch in 2013.

Lynch was lucky to survive the shooting and has since been so paranoid he rarely goes out barricading himself into his home in Marylands. When he tries to cover his face and the horrific scarring that he endured.



Greg Lynch

Lynch is a key member of a drugs gang that also includes Paul Rice and has close links to the international crime syndicate controlled by godfather Christy Kinahan.

Originally from the Oliver Bond flats complex, Lynch has been a long-term target for Gardai.

Lynch was aged just 19 when he was jailed for six years in 2004 after he was caught handing over €400,000 of heroin.

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/new...r-31199318.html

Two former members of Provisional IRA warned lives are in danger.

Two well known former members of the Provisional IRA have been visited by the PSNI to warn them that their lives are under threat.

Independent.ie can reveal that the pair were told that they should leave the Belfast area "in the short term, immediately".
This follows the brutal daylight murder of a former IRA commander and long-time associate of Gerry Adams yesterday.
The killing of Gerard 'Jock' Davison may have been carried out by dissident republicans, according to senior sources, and has rocked Sinn Fein in the week of the Westminster elections.
Detectives have arrested a 41-year old man in Belfast this morning in connection with the murder.
Detective Chief Inspector Justyn Galloway, who is leading the murder investigation said: "The suspect was detained in Belfast this morning and is being questioned at a police station in the city.”

VIDEO: Former IRA leader Gerard 'Jock' Davison shot dead in south Belfast
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“A property in north Belfast was searched last night as part of the overall investigation.”
Davison was gunned down in the Markets area of Belfast yesterday, although the PSNI and Sinn Fein were quick to dismiss a terrorist link to the murder.
Read more: Profile of Gerard ‘Jock’ Davison - the IRA boss who ordered the brutal killing of Robert McCartney
However, an informed source has told the Irish Independent that "in all probability this was the work of people within the Continuity IRA".
"The speed with which Sinn Fein came out to rule out paramilitary involvement makes perfect sense," said one source.
"The very last thing they need now as the party continues its drive into credible mainstream politics is a feud reupting between the Provisional IRA and a dissident group.
"There has been a feeling for some time in Belfast that the CIRA have been itching to become relevant again, and a high-profile IRA murder gives them that kudos," the source said.
Davison, a prominent figure in the IRA, was gunned down in a gangland-style attack that took place in front of terrified children yesterday.
Read more: Davison felt unassailable in his area, surrounded by IRA gang
The leading Republican figure was shot several times by a lone gunman close to his home, in the Markets area of Belfast city centre, around 9am, and died at the scene.
The killing was witnessed by children going to school, one of whom cried out "daddy, daddy".
Local sources claimed the killing of the IRA boss was carried out by people living in the area, which is a staunchly Republican stronghold.
"He was a man who would have made plenty of enemies," a PSNI source said.
The 47-year-old was intrinsically involved in the 2005 killing of Robert McCartney, which seriously jeopardised the peace process. He was accused of drawing his finger across his throat in a gesture to other IRA members in the bar.
He was arrested and questioned about the horrific murder by police but had always denied any involvement. Davison had been jailed in the 1980s for terrorist activities, including an IRA rocket attack on a police patrol when he was a teenager.
He rose through the ranks to become the IRA's commander in Belfast and is also believed to have been on the Army Council.
He later supported Sinn Féin's involvement in the peace process.
Sinn Féin president Gerry Adams described yesterday's shooting as a "brutal act" that should be condemned by all sensible people. "There can be no place today for such actions," he said.
Read more: McCartney murder put peace on the line
Detective Galloway said: "This was a cold-blooded murder carried out in broad daylight in a residential area and it has no place in the new Northern Ireland."
Asked about a possible threat hanging over Davison, DCI Galloway said: "I do not want to discuss the personal security of any individual, including Mr Davison."
DCI Galloway urged anyone with information to pass it to police, or through the independent charity, Crimestoppers.
"Mr Davison was a father, a grandfather, a brother and a son," he said.
Witnesses said the victim was walking along the street to work at a local community centre when a gunman approached and shot him at point-blank range. Police quickly cordoned off the scene and a yellow forensic tent was placed around the body.
A number of high-profile Belfast republicans were among small groups who watched as scenes-of-crime officers examined the area.
At one stage, distraught family members tried to get to the body and had to be held back.
Irish Independent

http://www.herald.ie/news/familys-terror-as-car-shot-up-with-machine-gun-outside-home-31233047.html

Family's terror as car shot up with machine gun outside home.

KEN FOY AND ROBIN SCHILLER – 19 MAY 2015 04:30 AM

A car belonging to an innocent family was raked with machine gun fire in a drive-by shooting in north Dublin.

No motive has yet been established for the attack which happened at the Farnham Drive estate in Finglas shortly before 8.30pm on Sunday.

The shots were discharged by a gunman who was a passenger on a motorbike and who was wearing dark clothes.

The 50-year-old owner of the targeted car has no involvement in crime and neither he or his family are known to gardai.

No-one was injured in the incident which may have been a case of mistaken identity. There have been no arrests so far.

The gunman fled from the scene on a high-powered motorbike and it is understood that the attacked car was extensively damaged in the incident.

ATTACK

"It seems that a machine gun, or a similar type of weapon, was used in this attack so it is being taken very seriously," a source pointed out last night.

When the Herald called to the house at Farnham Drive yesterday, there was no one home but a neighbour described how she heard several repeated loud bangs on the night, and thought her car was being damaged but it turned out to be her neighbour's vehicle.

"I was in the sitting room and all of a sudden there were a few loud bangs in a row. I thought it was somebody hitting my car.

I looked out and saw a motorbike speeding up the road. I couldn't believe it when I heard it was a gun being fired, it's shocking," the neighbour said.

"It must be a case of mistaken identity, the family are lovely, well-educated people. They're quiet and keep to themselves so I can't imagine any reason why someone would do this, other then that they got the wrong house," they added.

The family are understood to have left the house yesterday morning and had not returned to the address by last night.

Machine gun attacks in Ireland are extremely rare and Sunday evening's incident has led to major concern that such a high velocity weapon is in circulation in the Finglas area.

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/n...e-31226834.html

Crony of terror boss Michael McKevitt among four held after big explosives seizure.

BY TOM BRADY – 16 MAY 2015

Police in the Republic say the anti-terror operation that resulted in the arrests of suspected dissident republicans and the seizure of a large a haul of explosives is one of the most significant for several years.

Among those detained is a senior republican activist who is alleged to be the leader of the most dangerous faction of the Real IRA.

Senior officers are now seeking the go-ahead to press charges of directing terrorism against the prime suspect.

The Co Louth man is a former key associate of Michael McKevitt, who is currently serving a 20-year sentence for a similar offence.

McKevitt, who was co-founder of the Real IRA, was the first dissident to be charged and convicted of the offence, which was introduced in the wake of Omagh bombing in August 1998.

The suspect has IRA-linked convictions dating back to the 1970s and more recently received a substantial sentence from the Dublin Special Criminal Court after the Irish Special Branch swooped on a Real IRA training camp. If charged with directing terrorism, he will become only the second person in the Republic to face the offence.

Gardai have stepped up surveillance of dissident republicans as they prepare for the visits of Prince Charles and his wife Camilla next week.

One officer said: "The finds and arrests dovetailed nicely with the increased security for the royal visits but were not directly connected with it as the operation was planned well in advance and resulted from ongoing inquiries into the activities of dissidents along the border."

Four men were arrested including the son of a former prominent Provisional IRA activist.

http://www.sundayworld.com/news/courts/man-charged-with-ira-membership-granted-temporary-bail

Man charged with IRA membership granted temporary bail.

A Dublin man charged with membership of the IRA has been granted temporary bail by the Special Criminal Court.

Kevin Braney (40), of Glenshane Crescent, Tallaght, Dublin was among seven men brought before a special sitting of the non-jury court two years ago charged with membership of an unlawful organisation within the State namely Oglaigh na hEireann, otherwise the Irish Republican Army, otherwise the IRA on July 3 2013.

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Mr Braney was granted temporary bail by the three-judge Special Criminal Court this morning from May 26 until June 3 next on consent and on a number of conditions.

He was required to enter into his own bond of €100 to keep the peace and be of good behaviour while on bail, to surrender his passport and travel documents, reside at a given address except on one date when he is required to reside at an address outlined, sign on twice daily at a local garda station except on one date outlined, observe a curfew from between 7am and 7pm and provide a mobile phone number to gardaí.

Mr Braney was also required to not contact any prosecution witnesses or associate with any co-accused, persons convicted or charged with a scheduled offence or on bail from the Special Criminal Court save for in the presence of his legal team while on temporary bail.

Counsel for Braney, Tony McGillicuddy BL, told the non-jury court that Mr Braney's independent surety of €3,250 was present in court.

Mr Justice Paul Butler, presiding alongside Judge Cormac Dunne and Judge Flann Brennan, granted temporary bail.

Mr Braney's trial for alleged membership of an unlawful organisation is currently listed for June 9 next.

His six co-accused Peter Burns (39) of Glenshane Crescent, Tallaght, Brian Nick McBennet (56), of Ard Collum Avenue, Artane, Dublin 5 , Michael Barr (33) of Carlton Court, Poppintree, Ballymun, John Brock (41) of Glenview Park, Tallaght, Declan Phelan (31) of Lanndale Lawns, Tallaght and Desmond Christie (49) of Liam Mellows Road, Finglas, were all charged with the same offence on the same date.

http://www.thejournal.ie/state-surveilla...ce=twitter_self

State surveillance: How Gardaí and others can secretly monitor you

Part One of TheJournal.ie’s two-part series on state surveillance in Ireland.
IN THIS TWO-part series, we go inside the murky world of surveillance in Ireland, and expose the alarming gap between what agents of the state can do to you, and what you are allowed to know, and do, about it.
In Part One, we examine the extraordinary powers given to Gardaí, the Defence Forces, and Revenue, and what we know about how they use those powers.
In the second part, we look at what the Irish government is refusing to reveal about surveillance, the disastrous consequences when state monitoring goes unchecked, and ask – how do we compare to other countries?
GARDAI CAN BREAK into your home, implant a video camera or recording device in your living room, and leave it there for three months.
And they can break in again to remove the device, without you ever knowing they were there.
Revenue can put a tracking device on your vehicle, and monitor your movements, for four months.
The Defence Forces can intercept your emails, and tap your phone.
It’s all governed by law, and intended to combat serious crime and protect the security of the state.
But despite the far-reaching nature of these powers, we know – and are allowed to know – very little about how they’re actually used.
Several government departments and state agencies have refused a series of Freedom of Information requests by TheJournal.ie, which asked for very basic information about the use of covert surveillance powers.
What can they do?
Mobile phone handsets warning
Source: PA Wire/Press Association Images
Surveillance in Ireland is basically governed by two laws: the 1993 Interception of Postal Packets and Telecommunications Messages Act, and the 2009 Criminal Justice (Surveillance) Act.
Under the 1993 Act:
Gardaí or the Defence Forces can tap phones and listen to phone calls, open and read letters before they arrive to their recipient, and (potentially) read emails
After the Garda Commissioner or Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces applies for permission from the Justice Minister
For up to three months (extendable)
If they can show the surveillance will yield evidence they couldn’t otherwise get
As part of an investigation into serious crime, to prevent a serious crime, or to protect the security of the State
Under the 2009 Act:
Gardaí, the Defence Forces and Revenue can secretly record you with audio and video devices
For three months
They can break into your home to implant a device, and again to remove it
If they can, they have to get permission from a District Court judge, but if it’s an emergency, a “Superior Officer” in each agency decides, and they get 72 hours to engage in the surveillance
Gardaí, the Defence Forces and Revenue can secretly put a tracking device on your vehicle, and follow your movements
For four months
Without permission from a District Court judge, but with the approval of a “Superior Officer” within each agency.
Interestingly, this year’s Garda Síochána (Amendment) Act also gives the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) powers of surveillance over Garda members it is investigating.
So Gardaí themselves can now be secretly bugged, wiretapped, recorded and have their internet use monitored, under the 1993 and 2009 Acts.
What can you do about it?
Internet surveillance tribunal
Source: Dominic Lipinski
You’re unlikely to ever know if you’ve been the subject of covert surveillance, if it’s done properly, or unless it’s disclosed in a trial.
However, if you have a suspicion that your letters have been opened, emails read, or phone tapped, you can take a case.
The “Complaints Referee”, appointed by the Taoiseach, (currently High Court Justice Carroll Moran), can receive reports from the public, investigate whether there was surveillance, if it was properly authorised, and if it involved any legal violations.
They can then decide to quash an authorisation from the Justice Minister (retroactively declare it illegitimate), order the destruction of any recordings from the surveillance, and even order financial compensation.
However, the investigations and decisions of the Complaints Referee are not published.
TheJournal.ie filed a Freedom of Information request with the Taoiseach’s Department (to whom the Complaints Referee reports) asking how many complaints – upheld or rejected – have been made since the Act came into force.
We were told that no such records were found.
So the Irish public is missing two important pieces of information: how often state agencies violate surveillance laws, and how likely are you to win a case if you’re thinking about bringing one.
What DO we know?
1993reports
Source: PA/Oireachtas.ie
There is some degree of oversight when it comes to Ireland’s state surveillance regime.
Both laws require a designated judge give an annual report to the Taoiseach and the Oireachtas on how the Gardaí, Defence Forces and Revenue are using their covert surveillance powers.
The level of scrutiny and detail, however, depends on the vigour and energy of the judge making the report.
And both laws contain provisions that allow the Taoiseach to remove sensitive sections from the version of the report that he provides to legislators.
Law lecturer and chairman of Digital Rights Ireland, TJ McIntyre has been keeping a close eye on state surveillance for many years, and offers a mixed review of transparency surrounding the regime.
“You’re very much dependant on the happenstance of what the individual judge chooses to do and how they interpret their role,” he told TheJournal.ie.
In the case of the 2009 Act, McIntyre says the late Justice Kevin Feeney “took his job very seriously”, and produced reports that showed a “commitment to transparency.”
But designated judges for the 1993 Act – who are the only systematic and public overseers of the legal ability to wiretap phones – produce “derisory, identical, one-page reports, year in, year out,” he adds.
From 1994 until 2007, three separate designated judges produced identical reports on wiretapping, including only a one-sentence formula that achieves a minimal compliance with their remit under Section 8 of the 1993 Act:
I have kept the operation of the Act under review and I am satisfied that its provisions are being complied with.
Reports on the 2009 Act have been considerably more detailed, but still lack basic statistics.
Nonetheless, TheJournal.ie has been able to glean some interesting facts from those annual reviews.
We know that:
The overwhelming majority of surveillance involves tracking devices, which doesn’t require authorisation from a judge, and takes very little manpower
When a Garda member asks a Superior Officer to apply for a judge’s permission to perform surveillance, the Superior Officer almost always agrees
Judges almost always grant that authorisation
In one year (2009-2010) the number of surveillance requests approved internally by a senior Garda (“emergency” authorisations) was double the number approved by a judge.
Revenue agents almost always use the Act to place tracking devices on vehicles, as part of investigations into smuggling.
The Defence Forces rarely seek authorisation to bug, wiretap, and so on, under the 2009 Act, and didn’t do it once in 2012-2013.
We also know that the Gardaí keep a scrupulous record of every time surveillance is authorised, either by a District Court judge, or internally, by a senior Garda.
In his report on the 2009 Act for 2012-2013, Justice Michael Peart noted how helpful it was that Garda Headquarters kept a database and spreadsheet that were “easy to consult and review.”
TheJournal.ie asked the Gardaí for figures drawn from that permanent record, but they refused.
Furthermore, we know that Gardaí don’t consider other kinds of surveillance to be governed by the 2009 Act.
In his report for 2012-2013, Justice Peart mentioned that then Commissioner Martin Callinan, in an internal policy document, had advised that surveillance that doesn’t involve the use of devices, falls outside the legislation.
Which begs the question – what are the procedures, protocols and safeguards against abuse, which Gardaí have in place when it comes to following vehicles and persons, or watching movements in and out of homes?
TheJournal.ie put these questions, in detail, to An Garda Síochána, but they declined to comment.
In Part Two, we look at what Gardaí and the Irish government refuse to reveal about surveillance, the disastrous consequences of unchecked monitoring, and see how Ireland compares to the countries that brought you the NSA and GCHQ.

http://www.thejournal.ie/preview.php?article_id=2105584&preview_type=post

State surveillance: What the government and Gardaí don’t want you to know

Part Two of TheJournal.ie’s two-part series on state surveillance in Ireland.

IN THIS TWO-part series, we go inside the murky world of surveillance in Ireland, and expose the alarming gap between what agents of the state can do to you, and what you are allowed to know, and do, about it.
In Part One, we examined the extraordinary powers given to Gardaí, the Defence Forces, and Revenue, and what we know about how they use those powers.
In the second part, we look at what the Irish government is refusing to reveal about surveillance, the disastrous consequences when state monitoring goes unchecked, and ask – how do we compare to other countries?
What do we NOT know?
dontknow
Source: Garry Knight via lick
Obtaining even basic information about the exercise of these extensive surveillance powers has been extremely difficult.
TheJournal.ie sent Freedom of Information requests seeking basic statistical information about surveillance and wiretapping to the Departments of the Taoiseach, Justice and Communications, as well as the Defence Forces, the Courts Service, and Revenue.
In all cases we were told either the records do not exist, or cannot be released.
An Garda Síochána has been given an extra six months, until October 2015, to be compliant with the 2014 FOI Act, but TheJournal.ie asked them for statistics anyway.
That request was also rejected.
In its refusal to disclose records about the 1993 Act, the Department of Justice invoked parts of the FOI Act which provide for non-disclosure “to prevent the impairment of law enforcement and public safety and to prevent adversely affecting the security and defence of the State.”
It is the decision maker’s opinion that to reveal information in respect of interception authorisations, including the number sought and granted, would be prejudicial to the public interest (Emphasis added).
Independent TD Mick Wallace has repeatedly raised the issue in the Dáil with the Taoiseach and former Justice Minister Alan Shatter, and sees a complete lack of transparency surrounding state surveillance.
wallaceshatter Mick Wallace and then Justice Minister Alan Shatter debating the Garda penalty points scandal.
Source: RTÉ via YouTube
“With their own so-called oversight, they have a judge that comes in once a year, and is under no obligation to actually look at figures or statistics,” he told TheJournal.ie.
Some reports have contained approximations (“under 100,” “a small double figure number”) but no judge has ever included actual figures or statistics in his annual review.
In 2013, [Justice Iarfhlaith O'Neill] was able to look at the details in McKee Barracks [the Defence Forces], the Department of Justice, Revenue and Garda Headquarters in the Phoenix Park, all in one day, which is great going.
And he said he was very happy with everything he saw.
In an exchange with Alan Shatter last year, at the height of the scandal surrounding alleged Garda bugging of GSOC and recording of legally privileged phone conversations, Wallace said Gardaí were “a law unto themselves.”
The request for statistics does not threaten in any way or reveal any Garda methods or operations as they are general figures and do not relate to specific operations.
The Minister cannot prove this system is functioning unless he gives us the statistics.
In response to a query from TheJournal.ie, a spokesperson for Justice Minister Frances Fitzgerald reaffirmed the long-standing refusal to publish statistics:
This is for sound reasons of public policy related to national security and the investigation of serious crimes which may be hindered by the publication of such information.
Particular considerations arise in Ireland given the small size of the jurisdiction and the specific terrorist threat posed by paramilitary groups.
‘Catastrophic’ errors?
PA-3557366 File photo of UK police confiscating computer equipment.
Source: PA
We don’t know when Gardaí and others make mistakes in their monitoring and surveillance.
In Britain – where statistics and other details are published – there have been cases where technical errors lead to “catastrophic” consequences.
One official report gave this harrowing example:
Police took swift action when information from a reliable source suggested that a number of very young children were at immediate risk of falling into the hands of a paedophile ring.
Subscriber information relating to an Internet Protocol (IP) Address was obtained in order to locate an address for the children, but unfortunately it would appear this was not correct.
The police entered the address and arrested a person who was completely innocent…
What was the error? Confusion between an Internet Service Provider (ISP) and law enforcement, over the time zone of a particular IP address.
The UK experience also shows that, more often than not, it’s public bodies – not telecommunications companies – who make such mistakes.
An analysis of official figures by British lawyer Graham Smith, shows that over the last decade, 72% of “data errors” – incorrectly entered IP addresses, confusion involving Daylight saving time – were the fault of state agencies.
The incident described above, according to the report, led to reforms designed to improve the process.
In Ireland, we simply don’t know how many mistakes – catastrophic or otherwise – are being made.
Without the scrutiny that comes with comprehensive, published reports, Gardaí and others lack that particular incentive to improve their systems.
Digital Rights Ireland chairman TJ McIntyre explains:
It’s not that the telecommunications companies or police here make fewer mistakes – we just don’t have anybody actually picking up on it.
‘Off the books’ operations?
We also don’t know the extent to which Irish state agencies depend on companies to monitor internet and phone activity, as governed by the 2011 Communications (Retention of Data) Act, or whether they do it themselves.
TJ McIntyre says:
If this is something that’s being handled purely at the telecommunications company’s end, there will be some system in place that generates a paper trail.
But if it’s something that’s being done internally, either by the Gardaí or the Defence Forces, and they have the technology to do it independently, then there’s no guarantee of a paper trail, and you could have something being done ‘off the books.’
Last year, Vodafone asked the government for guidance on publishing the number of requests they had received for user data, in putting together their Transparency Report.
The Department of Justice controversially instructed Vodafone they were prohibited by law from doing so.
Is this situation normal?
Snowden Speaks NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden
Source: AP/Press Association Images
When it comes to international standards, McIntyre says Ireland ranks “very, very low indeed.”
The UK model is not particularly advanced, by any means, but it’s still much better than here.
Despite major controversies surrounding mass surveillance by Britain’s Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), there is at least a system of record-keeping when it comes to surveillance and monitoring of the public there.
The Interception of Communications Commissioner’s Office keeps track of how often and why state agencies request user data from telecommunications companies.
In his 104-page report for 2014, the Commissioner provides extensive statistics, detailed breakdowns of the purpose of interception requests, and even figures and a breakdown of unlawful or mistaken interceptions.
The Office of Surveillance Commissioners provides similarly extensive and detailed annual reports, including statistics and breakdowns on “property interference,” “intrusive surveillance,” and also “irregularities” – unlawful or mistaken surveillance.
The Intelligence and Security Committee snooping report GCHQ, near Cheltenham.
Source: Barry Batchelor/PA
A series of revelations about National Security Agency (NSA) wiretapping and data collection has battered the global reputation of the United States.
But even there, transparency and oversight of surveillance is superior to our own.
A 1968 law requires US courts to submit annual reports to Congress on the number of authorisations for phone-tapping and email interception, including a breakdown of the purpose of requests, and even their average cost to the tax-payer.
In Ireland, the law requires the exact opposite.
Both Revenue and the Gardaí, in refusing TheJournal.ie’s requests for statistics on surveillance, invoked Section 13 of the 2009 Act, which forbids disclosing “any information in connection with the operation of this Act in relation to surveillance…”
The maximum punishment for sharing “any information” about state surveillance? A five-year prison sentence and €50,000 fine.
New regime?
New Garda Recruits
Source: Mark Stedman/Photocall Ireland
On replacing Alan Shatter as Justice Minister last May, Frances Fitzgerald promised a “new era” of reform, accountability and transparency in the Gardaí and the administration of justice.
But Wexford TD Mick Wallace says “we haven’t seen 5% of that.”
I’d like to be able to say that things were improving for the better under the new Commissioner and the new Minister for Justice, but sadly, everything has stayed the same.
When it comes to surveillance, Fitzgerald has made one change that Wallace had previously called for - giving GSOC new powers to bug, wiretap and track Gardaí.
But she has also sidestepped questions on surveillance programmes.
Last September, for example, Independent TD Clare Daly asked for the number of court orders to “tap-monitor text and call data” in the last five years.
Fitzgerald (rightly) corrected Daly, pointing out that she herself, the Justice Minister, was responsible for 1993 Act authorisations, and not the courts.
But she didn’t say how often she and her predecessors had actually done it.
Which was the point of the question.
Part One: What the state can do to you (and what you can do about it)>

Documents
1993 Interception of Postal Packets and Telecommunications (Messages) Act
2009 Criminal Justice (Surveillance) Act
2011 Communications (Retention of Data) Act
Designated judges’ reports on the 1993 Act:
1994-2004
2006-2014
Designated judges’ reports on the 2009 Act, 2010-2014

http://www.herald.ie/news/drug-addict-di...r-31240215.html

Drug addict didn't get a cent of promised €40k for brutal gang murder.

KEN FOY CRIME CORRESPONDENT – 21 MAY 2015 03:00 AM

A junkie hitman who detectives believe was "sub-contracted" to murder gangster John Wilson has not seen a cent of the €40,000 he was promised for the gun murder.

Yesterday, Ballyfermot thug Keith O'Neill (40) was jailed for life after a jury convicted him of shooting John Wilson (35) dead on September 28, 2012 at his home in Cloverhill Road, west Dublin.

And it emerged last night that gardai hope to press charges against one other Ballyfermot criminal in relation to Wilson being gunned down in his hallway in front of his young daughter.

Wilson came from one of the country's most notorious gangland families.

His younger brother Eric (32) is serving a 23-year sentence in Spain for murder. Another brother, Keith (27), is serving a life sentence for a 2010 Finglas gangland murder.

No motive for the shocking murder was disclosed during O' Neill's trial, but senior sources have revealed that a €40,000 contract had been placed on Wilson's head in the months before he was shot dead, and he was warned by detectives of an active threat against his life.

Sources said gardai believe that the €40,000 contract was put up by a dangerous criminal from the Islandbridge area who had been in dispute with Wilson for years.

It is believed that a 35-year-old Ballyfermot criminal who was previously investigated for the double murders of the Corbally brothers in Neils-town almost five years ago agreed to carry out the killing.

However, detectives believe that this gangster, who was previously the victim of a savage assault by rival criminals, sub-contracted the hit to heroin addict O'Neill who has 116 previous convictions.

"It is not known why exactly O'Neill got involved. It is believed he owed a drugs debt but he is certainly no criminal mastermind," a senior source said last night.

"What is for sure is that neither he nor his associates have been paid a single cent for the murder, and this is something that has caused some tensions from time to time since.

"Gardai will now try and bring charges against the criminal who it is suspected sub-contracted O'Neill and also played an active part in the murder."

The two-week trial heard that the daughter of the deceased told gardai: "I just heard 'bang bang bang' - I could see my dad rolling around. I feel a little bit sad and a little happy because my dad is away from the bad boys now."

Dispute

The Central Criminal Court heard that Wilson had driven to his home with his seven-year-old daughter and a friend when a gunman entered through the open front door and shot him from behind.

Wilson, who had previously been involved in a bitter feud with Alan Ryan's Real IRA faction which led to the infamous Players Lounge shooting in 2010, received two gunshot wounds to the left arm and to the chest, fatally damaging his internal organs.

http://www.herald.ie/news/sean-enright-home-raided-as-cab-probe-miracle-bodybuilder-31240002.html

Sean Enright home raided as CAB probe 'miracle' bodybuilder.

KEN FOY CRIME CORRESPONDENT – 21 MAY 2015 03:00 AM

Gangland miracle man Sean Enright, who has survived two assassination attempts, is the focus of a major investigation by the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB), the Herald can reveal.

A large number of CAB officers searched Enright's home in Carnlough Road, Cabra, in a dawn raid on Tuesday and seized documents and other material.

As part of a long-running investigation, a solicitor's office in Dublin was also searched but no arrests were made in the raids, which are understood to have been in the planning for months.

It is believed that fitness fanatic Enright (34) was present in the Cabra property when the CAB officers searched it.

"This is part of a lengthy investigation which is ongoing and will be into the future," a source said last night.

Gym boss Enright has made an excellent recovery after being shot several times in the back outside his gym in a business park in Cabra in May, 2013.

Enright spent several months being treated at the National Rehabilitation Centre in Dun Laoghaire after undergoing emergency surgery, but he has even been heavily involved in mixed martial arts (MMA) training in recent weeks.

Notorious criminal Carl Wynne, who gardai believe tried to kill Enright, died in July 2013 in hospital after he was shot three times when lured to a meeting in Tallaght.

Wynne (47) was previously arrested in connection with the shooting of Enright but was released without charge after being questioned for five days.

Less than a week later, he suffered fatal injuries when he was targeted by a gunman at the junction of St Dominic's Road and Mountain Park Road in Tallaght who fled the scene on a motorbike and escaped to the northside of the city.

enemies

Detectives have been working on the theory that Wynne was shot by the same Finglas gang responsible for the gun murder of drug dealer Paul Cullen in a Cabra pub in February 2013 and numerous violent incidents since then.

Father-of-two Enright has received multiple formal notifications from gardai over the years of an active threat against his life from a variety of criminal enemies including the Real IRA.

Enright, who was very friendly with jailed Finglas gangland brothers Alan 'Fatpuss' and Wayne Bradley, had previously survived another gun attack despite being shot several times.

He made another recovery after being shot six times - including three times in the chest - by slain terror chief Alan Ryan's Real IRA crew outside his girlfriend's home in Clonsilla on January 27, 2011.

It is understood Enright survived the attempted murder bid because he was wearing a bulletproof vest and because of his muscular physique.

Last March, Enright was fined €500 for assaulting a man at Lillie's Bordello in December 2011.

http://www.herald.ie/news/christy-kinahan-gang-enforcer-joins-rival-criminals-31243052.html

Christy Kinahan gang enforcer joins rival criminals.

KEN FOY CRIME CORRESPONDENT – 22 MAY 2015 12:00 AM

A former top enforcer for the Christy Kinahan crime syndicate has joined a Scottish gang who are in dispute with Ireland's biggest drugs-running cartel.

Gardai are monitoring the next move by Tallaght thug Paul Rice (45) after "information indicates" that Rice is no longer working for Kinahan.

"Rice seems to have built up a relationship with a Scottish crew who are active on the 'Costa del Crime' and have been in dispute with the Kinahans," a source said last night.

Rice's split from Kinahan's gang was motivated by the shooting dead of his best friend Gerard 'Hatchet' Kavanagh in Spain last year - Kinahan's mob are the prime suspects for the gun attack.

Paul Kavanagh, a younger brother of Hatchet, was shot dead last month.

Both brothers are believed to have been shot dead on the orders of the Kinahan trafficking syndicate.

Dozens of armed gardai were involved in a major operation against Rice only weeks after he carried the coffin of 'Hatchet' Kavanagh, who was shot dead in Spain last September.

Tensions were high during the raid at Rice's Tallaght home, but he was not arrested in the operation last October 9 when the Emergency Response Unit was backed up by the Criminal Assets Bureau.

Rice is one of Ireland's most feared criminals.

His most serious conviction came when he was jailed for 10 years in July 1995 after pleading guilty to the robbery of a bank during which shots were fired.

He escaped on horseback after the hold-up and a security guard was beaten with a lump hammer.

Rice was arrested by gardai investigating a kidnap and torture incident at a house in Lucan in October 2010.

He was also questioned in 2013 about the gruesome gangland murder of a man whose body was found in the Dublin Mountains.

And he was questioned about a botched hit on car dealer Michael Frazer in the car park of a pub in Firhouse, south Dublin, last August.

For a number of years Rice had been acting as a money collector for the Kinahan international crime syndicate.

Rice and his crew previously told slain Real IRA gang boss Alan Ryan to "f*** off" when the RIRA came looking for protection money in 2011, just months before Ryan was murdered by a different criminal gang.

http://www.herald.ie/news/stabbing-victim-was-terminally-ill-from-years-of-drug-abuse-31250201.html

Stabbing victim was terminally ill from years of drug abuse.

CONOR FEEHAN AND JIM CUSACK – 25 MAY 2015 12:00 AM

GARDAI are investigating whether the murder victim found dumped in west Dublin - who had a terminal illness - was killed for fear he would make a death-bed confession.

The body of Andrew Guerrine (37), from New Street South in the inner city, was found on Saturday morning in the exact same spot where the newborn 'Baby Maria' was found three weeks ago on a stretch of country road off the N7 motorway at Steelstown.

There is no known connection between the two incidents other than Guerrine's killers might have learned from press reports on the discovery of Baby Maria that the stretch of road had no CCTV coverage, gardai believe.

Guerrine was a drug addict and a criminal with links to the top assassin in the State's biggest and most deadly crime gang, sources have told the Herald.

Decay

Meanwhile, local sources in the south inner city say he only had months to live after a steady decline in his health in recent years from drug use.

He was suffering from a form of bodily decay that is common in intravenous drug users who have infections from dirty needles or drugs contaminated with bacteria.

Local people said Guerrine "smelled like a corpse".

He was in the advanced stages of the illness and had been told he had not long to live, the sources said.

The gang - responsible for much of the supply of cocaine, heroin, cannabis and ecstasy to Dublin and much of the rest of the country - is believed to have ordered his murder.

Last night members of his wider family and circle of friends posted messages of support on Guerrine's Facebook page.

His family declined to comment on his death when approached as they gathered a t his home in the south inner city.

Guerrine was arrested and questioned a number of times in relation to gang-related killings but he was never charged with any serious offences.

It is suspected that he might have been murdered, despite the fact it was known he had probably not long to live, in case he decided to make some form of death-bed confession.

The assassin Guerrine was associated with is suspected of carrying out up to 14 murders on behalf of the Spanish-based drugs cartel that has become the dominant force in Irish organised crime.

Gardai suspect the order for Guerrine's murder may have come from inside prison where a number of key figures in the crime syndicate are currently serving terms.

The gang is probably responsible for between a quarter and a third of the gangland killings in Dublin in recent years, gardai say. It is believed they are responsible for the murder on March 26 last of Paul Kavanagh (29) who was shot dead in broad daylight on the main Drumcondra Road in north Dublin.

wounds

It is thought Paul Kavanagh was murdered because of a drug debt he 'inherited' from his brother, Gerard 'Hatchet' Kavanagh (44), who was shot dead at a bar in Elviria outside Marbella last September.

The post-mortem carried out on Guerrine on Saturday by Assistant State Pathologist Dr Margaret Bolster is understood to have indicated he was killed from repeated stab wounds to his body and neck.

It is believed he was murdered elsewhere and his body transported to Steelstown via Junction 5 on the N7, which is one of the few slip-roads on the motorway which has no commercial premises nearby and is not covered by CCTV.

The body was spotted by a driver who alerted gardai at 2.50am on Saturday. It was initially thought he might have been killed in a hit-and-run.

http://www.herald.ie/news/notorious-tali...n-31252667.html

Notorious 'Taliban' brothers back in city after years on the run.

KEN FOY CRIME CORRESPONDENT – 26 MAY 2015 03:00 AM

Two notorious north Dublin brothers nicknamed 'The Taliban' have returned to Dublin after spending years on the run in Europe and Northern Ireland.

The pair have been spotted in the Edenmore and Coolock areas of the capital in recent weeks.

It is understood they have been collecting money in relation to a massive heroin and cocaine dealing network.

worrying

The brothers, aged 32 and 30, are wanted for questioning in relation to a spate of killings including two double murders.

Gardai have spent years working with the PSNI monitoring the pair's activities, but so far they have managed to avoid serious convictions.

"It is a worrying development that these two evil individuals feel confident enough to be operating in Dublin again as they are wanted for questioning in relation to a litany of murders," a source said.

"When they first came back they would only spend an hour or two in Dublin before fleeing across the border, but now they're even staying overnight which shows that they're beginning to feel more and more comfortable."

The brothers are the chief suspects for the savage slayings of Ballybough men Joseph Redmond (25) and Anthony Burnett (31), who were shot and their bodies burned in a car in a forest near Dundalk, Co Louth, in March 2012. An adjourned inquest heard both men died from gunshot wounds to the head and that their bodies were found "completely charred".

The other double murder in which the brothers are chief suspects is that of cousins Glen Murphy (19), of O'Devaney Gardens, and Mark Noonan (23), from Drumalee, both in the north inner city, who were shot dead outside a service station at Tesco Express at the Clearwater Shopping Centre in Finglas in November 2010.

Gardai are satisfied that the cousins were victims of mistaken identity, targeted as part of a Coolock drugs feud in which they had no involvement.

Neither of the victims had any connection with gangland crime, but were shot dead when a "non-sophisticated" tracking device was mistakenly put on a Toyota Avensis car that was owned by Mark Noonan instead of a car belonging to a major criminal.

After their murders, gardai found the device hidden in the rear of the Avensis.

They believe it was planted there on behalf of the major northside criminal who had ordered the hit.

stabbed

The brothers are also the chief suspects for the murder of small-time criminal James Perdue (22), who was shot dead in Donaghmede in June 2006.

They are further believed to have had some involvement in the slayings of innocent men Warren O' Connor (24), who was stabbed to death in January 2010, and Keith Fitzsimons, who was gunned down in 2006.

'The Taliban' grew up in the Coolock area and were heavily involved in organised burglaries and armed robberies when they were teenagers.

The feared siblings then progressed to contract killings and became the main hitmen for the 'Mr Big' drugs gang.

http://www.herald.ie/news/caught-on-camera-the-moment-gunman-blasts-gangster-and-flees-31256357.html

Caught on camera - the moment gunman blasts gangster and flees.

KEN FOY CRIME CORRESPONDENT – 27 MAY 2015 03:00 AM

This chilling image shows the moment a gunman flees just seconds after the murder of gangster Christopher Zambra in broad daylight last year.

CCTV images released by gardai to RTE's Crimecall programme this week show the masked gunman running at speed just seconds after he shot notorious criminal Zambra (39) eight times at Cooley Road in Drimnagh on May 4, 2014.

The killer's face is disguised with a balaclava and he is wearing a dark jacket, jeans and white runners.

Other images show the gunman firing at Zambra from a stolen Nissan Qashqai after the gangster was followed from his home at Galtymore Road in Drimnagh on the May bank holiday weekend last year.

A large number of bullets were fired at him while he was still in his Audi car and as he tried to flee. He collapsed outside a house and died in front of horrified children who were playing nearby.

Six shots were initially fired from the handgun into the Audi and Zambra, who was on his own in the car, climbed into the front passenger seat and stumbled out of the vehicle.

Shots hit the windscreen and more blasted out the driver's window. Zambra ran along the pavement and into the garden of a house three doors away.

He then collapsed in the garden and the gunman fired two further shots into his face.

Gardai have also released footage of the getaway driver fleeing from Benmadigan Road, a short distance from the shooting after he torched the vehicle which had been stolen in Kildare some weeks earlier and in which the handgun used in the fatal shooting was discovered.

Two arrests were made last September as part of the investigation which is being led by gardai based in Sundrive Road Garda Station.

However, neither of these men were the hitman or getaway driver and it is suspected that they stalked the victim in the days before he was shot.

RUTHLESS

Fingerprint evidence linked the Dublin men to vehicles used as part of the murder and one of the arrested suspects is a 41-year-old man based in Clondalkin.

He is also suspected of involvement in a ruthless tiger kidnapping in Leinster in which a family were tied up.

He has around 20 previous convictions and is facing trial in relation to a very serious crime.

A 28-year-old man was the other man arrested last September after officers raided his home in Kimmage.

He is not as well known to gardai as the older suspect but has a previous conviction for a serious assault in Dublin city centre and was previously convicted of being in a stolen car.

Both men were released without charge and it is understood gardai have plans to arrest more people as part of the lengthy investigation.

At Dublin Coroner's Court last August, the opening of the inquest into his death heard that Zambra died as a result of "internal injuries due to gunshot wounds to the chest".

Zambra was acquitted in June 2013 of the February 2009 murder of drugs trafficker John Carroll who was shot dead at a pub in the Coombe.

http://www.sundayworld.com/news/crimedes...w-legit-targets

Gangland thug 'Buffalo' Billy warns how Real IRA members now 'legit targets'

Psycho gangland thug ‘Buffalo’ Billy Clare has given an extraordinary TV interview claiming that he was part of a squad who expelled former INLA commander Declan ‘Wacker’ Duffy from Dublin and quipped: “He’s not dead, not dead yet.”

The former paramilitary has also laid down the gauntlet to members of the Real IRA, saying: “I see republicans in Dublin, the likes of the Real IRA, I class them now as a legitimate target.”

In an bizarre interview, the extortionist – who was quizzed in connection with the murder of father-of-three Stephen O’Meara, who was buried alive in Wicklow – also describes in chilling detail how former Westies thug Bernard Sugg was shot dead and left “squealing like a pig” by an INLA unit he claims he was a member of.

Clare has served a sentence for membership of the Continuity IRA (CIRA) after the Special Criminal Court heard that he had extorted money from club boss Dave Mooney on behalf of the organisation.

It is understood that the CIRA has since renounced him, despite the fact that he continued to use their name to strike terror into communities in Wicklow and Wexford.

In the interview, which is part of a series titled ‘Gangsters: Faces of the Underworld’ to be screened on Quest, the bulked-up thug describes himself as a soldier in the “war against drug dealers”.



Presenter Bernard O’Mahoney, a reformed U.K. criminal, introduces Clare as: “Billy Clare shoots and bombs drug dealers simply because he loathes them and the damage their vile trade does to society.

“Described by the Irish media as a psychotic thug who terrorises communities, Clare prefers to see himself as a man on a mission for the good of all.”

During the interview, Clare says that at an early age he became involved in the Wolfe Tone Society in London, which he says “springboarded” him into extreme republicanism and the Provisional IRA.

He says the sort of operations he was sent on by the IRA in Dublin were “mostly directed towards drug dealers and that kind of activity” and goes on to say that by targeting them he means “execute them”.

“You don’t come to fight big drug gangs who have assets behind them using Salvation Army tactics, you got to hit them with full strength and hit them with everything you got. And look for a weakness. And you find a weakness.

“You know, whether it’s kidnapping, shootings, petrol bombing, grenades, you know whatever is being used on them.



“People will support that because these people are devastating communities and they don’t care about what they sell or who they sell it to, so you must meet them with the same train of thought. You don’t care about them or their families.”

Clare says that the intended targets were never warned if they were going to be “kidnapped or punishment shootings or executed”.

O’Mahoney says that Clare’s hatred for drug dealers resulted in his expulsion from the IRA, but “the more extreme Republican INLA saw his passion to beat, shoot and bomb those who pedal misery as an asset rather than a hindrance”.

O’Mahoney reveals: “The INLA were much smaller, but had the same train of thought and it was, you know, extreme violence. There was people executed on the INLA’s watch.”

Clare tells the documentary that his time in the INLA came to an end around 2000, when he says: “You had the likes of Declan Duffy (pictured above), who was the leader of the INLA in Dublin.

“He was, you know, a character. He was involved in backing up drug dealers and supporting them while pretending to be some kind of a crusader against drug dealers. He was expelled and he was sent packing from the capital.”

Clare also claims to have details of the shooting of Bernard ‘Verb’ Sugg.

“We had one incident where they were causing chaos and havoc in Blanchardstown.

“Bernard Sugg, or Verb as they called him, he was asked to come to a meeting and when he came to the meeting he was asked to desist from activities and leave the area.

“He refused to do so and as a result of that meeting he was blasted twice in the stomach and left squealing on the ground like a pig and the rat he was.

“You have to show these people more violence than they have imagined because these people live on a pedestal that because you are a drug dealer they must be violent and feared.”

Bizarrely, Clare claims he was declared clinically dead after his arrest for the murder of 26-year-old O’Meara.



The Sunday World understands that while he was being questioned he collapsed and was brought to hospital with a suspected heart attack believed to have been brought on by steroids.

However, Clare tells a different tale, claiming he was surrounded by masked and armed police and was “rendered unconscious”.

“It was later on that day when I was rushed into hospital in Dublin where I was pronounced clinically dead for a short while,” he says.

Later it transpired that they had forced me to drink poison and there was absolutely no investigation into my attempted murder by the Irish police.”

He goes on to say he is no longer in any group and regards paramilitaries such as the Real IRA as a legitimate target for him now.

“I class them now as a legitimate target. As far as I’m concerned, they work hand in hand with senior drug dealers both here and in Spain.

“The leader of the Real IRA in Dublin, his name was Alan Ryan.

“He was an unscrupulous character, not very likeable fella, a womaniser and basically a coward and you know every dog has his day and I suppose drug dealers had enough of him because they were taking, taking, taking… and using money from themselves on holidays, cars, putting cameras outside their houses and you know lining their own pockets, showing signs of wealth.

“So I mean he met his demise and you know, I have as much sympathy for him as I would for any other drug dealers.”

The Sunday World first unmasked Clare as a ‘gun for hire’ in 2010 when we attained a homemade video showing himself creeping about in a remote woodland and firing off one of his weapons.

http://www.irishmirror.ie/news/irish-news/crime/alan-oneill-gangland-victim-stalked-5786548

Alan O'Neill: Gangland victim stalked for up to a week by killers.

The 35-year-old dad of two was blasted three times on Wednesday night as he returned to his home in South Dublin by assassins who lay in wait for him.

The burned out car found close to the scene of the shooting on Kiltalown Road, Tallaght; victim Alan O'Neill (inset left), and a bullet hole in the kitchen unit of victim's home
Gangland murder victim Alan O’Neill was stalked for up to a week before he was gunned down in front of his partner, it has been revealed.

The 35-year-old dad of two was blasted three times on Wednesday night as he returned to his home in South Dublin by assassins who lay in wait for him.

Gardai believe he got into a row with associates of the feared Kinahan mob before he was executed.

A source said: “There has been talk that Alan was a low-level cannabis dealer.

“There would be a chance he could have been supplied these drugs by criminals who have links to Christy Kinahan’s gang.

“One avenue of investigation is he had a row with the wrong people which
ultimately cost him his life.”

Two men aged 18 and 28 were arrested a short time after the killing and are still being held at Tallaght Garda station.

They can be held for questioning for another four days.

Garda tape seals off the scene of the shooting on Kiltalown Road, Tallaght, DublinGarda tape seals off the scene of the shooting on Kiltalown Road, Tallaght, Dublin
Gardai are now piecing together CCTV footage in the hope that they can track down a third man involved in the shooting who managed to escape.

Officers conducted door-to-door inquiries in the aftermath of the attack and neighbours reported hearing a number of shots being fired at around 10.30pm.

Hitmen blasted fitness fanatic Mr O’Neill after he got out of his car at his home in Jobstown, Tallaght.

His partner Michelle Usher was waiting at their open front door where a stray bullet missed her by inches and ricocheted into the kitchen. Mr O’Neill collapsed on the ground and the gunmen made their getaway.

Meanwhile, tributes have continued to pour in for the popular father.

Michelle’s brother wrote on Facebook: “Still shocked and my heart is broke for my sister and the kids. RIP Al.

Colin KeeganGardai outside the scene of the shooting on Kiltalown Road, Tallaght, DublinGardai outside the scene of the shooting on Kiltalown Road, Tallaght, Dublin
“You always tried to push us to be better I’ll never forgot how amazing you were to Michelle and the kids and the whole family devastated.

“Can’t believe it still. You will stay in our hearts forever bro.

“You will never be gone in our eyes. Till we meet again my friend, rest in peace.”

The gunmen torched their getaway car – a people carrier – in Belfry Square, a short distance away from Mr O’Neill’s Kiltalown Road home.

So what exactly, ornot, does the IrishOC landscape look like right now? Who are the gangs, the leaders and places. What are the rackets and so forth. I love the 3 irish oc threads going on here and I hope they continue.. good work

Joe, There is on this thread and Criminal Action Force thread a lot on all the gangs in Ireland.

The threads are up to date most of the time but i will try add some more stuff in this post.

A report out,

25 criminal gangs control Irish underworld, says Garda Chief Martin Callinan
http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/25-...n-28904190.html

Now the gangs in Ireland over the last 15 years and more so over the last 10 years have taken over a lot OC in the United Kingdom and Spain and the rest of Continental mainland Europe.

So the OC arm of the Irish gangs are not only big in Ireland but outside Irish borders as well, The press reports have not got on to how powerful the Irish OC gangs are in the UK and just say it is one gang in Spain etc etc.

The most powerful leaders today are people who would be members of Criminal Action Force-CAF or United Criminal Alliance-U.C.A. you are talking 12 gangs and up to 300 members or more one gang has 60 members and an other just two blocks away has 40 so 100 in just the two gangs Dublin 8 area.

Weapons,

Assault rifles Submachine Guns, Handguns, booby trap explosive Car bomb devices.

http://www.herald.ie/news/gaa-stars-house-burnt-out-in-arson-attack-by-ira-gangsters-31274776.html

GAA star's house burnt out 'in arson attack by IRA gangsters.

JIM CUSACK – 03 JUNE 2015 07:53 AM

A house being built by an All-Ireland-winning Gaelic football star has been destroyed in what locals believe is an IRA arson attack.

The house at Monog Road outside Crossmaglen, Co Armagh, being built by local GAA star Danny O'Callaghan, was completely gutted. Six fire appliances from south Down and Armagh services attended the fire when it broke out at around 2.30am on Sunday.

It is the second house to have been attacked in a similar fashion in the past two months.

The cause of Sunday morning's fire will not be known until results of forensic examination by the PSNI and Northern Ireland Fire Service are back.

However, two ground floor windows were smashed and it is believed arsonists poured flammable liquid in through one, starting the fire. The second broken window would have provided a draught.

Local people said the house being built by Mr O'Callaghan was close to completion.

There was deep anger in the area yesterday over what was described locally as a "dirty Provo job".

Danny O'Callaghan's father, also Danny, was attacked by the Provisional IRA's 'South Armagh Brigade' 13 years ago.

He was shot six times in the arms and legs after being overpowered by an IRA squad in February 2002 in front of his son. In another incident the following month, the same IRA punishment squad attempted to abduct and do serious harm to another man.

But, in the melee that broke out in a yard at Cullaville, a member of the IRA 'punishment' gang, Keith Rogers (21) was shot and killed. Rogers's death is commemorated by Sinn Féin each year.

Mr O'Callaghan senior, who also lives on Monog Road near his son's house, said the family did not wish to comment.

Local people blamed the 'offspring' of local Provisional IRA bosses who control the massively lucrative diesel and cigarette smuggling trade.

Sources said that members of the same gang that beat 21-year-old Paul Quinn, from Cullyhanna, to death in October 2007 were responsible for the attack on Danny O'Callaghan's home.

The O'Callaghans are highly respected in the area and have no connection with any illegal or illicit activity. Locals say there is bitter resentment towards them from local Provisional republicans.

Local people said Danny O'Callaghan Jnr lived for two years in Australia but returned and took up playing with Crossmaglen Rangers. He has three All-Ireland club medals.

http://ulsterherald.com/2015/06/02/prose...-omagh-murders/

Prosecution makes progress in case against man charged with 29 Omagh murders.

A senior member of the Public Prosecution Service (PPS) has indicated that the case against the Monaghan man charged with murdering 29 people in the Omagh bomb will be ready to proceed to the Crown Court in August. Seamus Daly (43) appeared at Omagh Magistrates Court on Tuesday via a video-link from Maghaberry Prison. He faces 31 charges in connection with the August 1998 Real IRA atrocity, including 29 counts of murder. Unborn twins were also killed in the bombing. He is further charged with causing the explosion on August 15 1998 and possessing a bomb in Omagh, with intent to endanger life. He is also charged with conspiring to cause an explosion and possessing explosives with intent in connection with an attempt to detonate a bomb in Market Square, Lisburn earlier in 1998. Originally from Culloville in Co Monaghan, Daly’s address in court was given as Kilnasaggart Road, Jonesborough, Co Armagh. Relatives of some of those killed in the Omagh bomb, including Michael Gallagher, Godfrey Wilson and Stanley McCombe, were present in the local courthouse for the hearing on Tuesday. ‘VERY GOOD PROGRESS’ Four weeks ago at the previous hearing on the progress of the case, PPS barrister Michael Chambers said the authorities in the North were seeking mobile phone evidence from their counterparts in the Republic Of Ireland. This week, he told the court that the evidence has been provided from the Republic of Ireland adding there has been “very good” progress since the last hearing. He stated that the PSNI are “satisfied” they have all the information needed regarding the mobile phone material. He also indicated that important witness material has been obtained. However, Mr Chambers said there remains “one small outstanding” – an interview given by Daly to An Garda Síochána when he accepted ownership of the mobile phone. The prosecution lawyer said it was used in the trial of Sean Hoey, and is “critical” for the prima facie case against Daly. In 2007 Hoey from Jonesborough in Co Armagh was cleared of the murders of 29 people who died in the Omagh bomb. Mr Chambers explained that statements have to be transferred to paper with a ‘Northern Ireland’ mark, adding that Gardai will have to travel from “four corners of Ireland” for this to be completed. He said they will only be needed to confirm that the statement is accurate. He asked for another three weeks to collate the outstanding evidence and said he expects Daly will be committed to the Crown Court for trial in “mid to late August”. ‘ALL MATERIAL’ Defence barrister Peter Corrigan said it was incumbent on the authorities to make available “all material in the interviews” of the prosecution witness Dennis O’Connor. He added, “…That includes contradictory statements given.” District Judge Bernie Kelly said it was not a matter for the court proceedings at this time, to which Mr Corrigan responded that he wanted the issue “put on record”.

BBC Panorama: Britain's Secret Terror Deals.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cUJCPY9F40I

http://www.irishmirror.ie/news/irish-news/crime/traveller-gang-vows-revenge-after-5373146#rlabs=1

Traveller gang vows to get revenge after INLA thugs steal €28,000 worth of cocaine.

Gardai on high alert after a bloody feud erupted between INLA and a Traveller gang over a cocaine deal that went sour
A feud has erupted between INLA thugs and a Traveller gang after a €28,000 drug deal went sour, the Irish Mirror can reveal.

Associates of a senior republican had planned to sell a massive haul of cocaine to the gang but took the money and ran without handing over the goods.

Since then, the Travellers have dished out a number of retaliation beatings to members of the terror group in the border area between Louth and Armagh.

The republicans involved had links to slain INLA leader Dominic McGlinchey, who was shot dead in Drogheda, Co Louth, in 1994.

While no shots have been fired in this latest feud, republican sources told the Irish Mirror that it is only a matter of time before blood is spilled.

The drug dealing is infuriating many republicans who believe the practice is undermining the cause. Sources told the Mirror: “There was about €28,000 worth of coke that was supposed to go this Traveller gang.

“But the lads thought it would be a much better idea to take the money and not hand anything over.

“This would be typical of these lads. Most of the time they’re just looking for a fight.

“They’re masquerading as republicans, saying the money they’re raising is for guns. But it’s drug money lining their pockets.

“The cause is in tatters because of criminals like these.

“They haven’t pulled any guns on each other at the minute because they don’t want the guards sniffing about the place.

“They want to keep it quiet between themselves but it’s going to spill over soon.”

Gardai are aware of the bubbling dispute in the area but no complaints have been made so they have not been able to act on the intelligence.

There has been bad blood developing over the lucrative smuggling industry in the border region.

Gangs from the IRA, INLA and RIRA are vying for superiority and Traveller gangs are now trying to inch onto their patch.

There has been no reports of all three dissident gangs working together but sources said they could join forces in the future if differences are put aside.

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/new...s-31267061.html

Official' IRA hid 5,000 AK-47s in secret bunkers
REVEALED - KGB and North Korea-supplied guns stashed in secret 'doomsday' arms dumps.

Senior republican sources said the arsenal - which consists mainly of never-used assault rifles and medium machineguns - was supplied to the leadership of the terror group in the 1980s by the North Korean government and the old Soviet KGB and were hidden in specially built bunkers
As many as 5,000 weapons may still be concealed in secret 'doomsday' bunkers set up by the tiny 'Official' IRA group that was allegedly disbanded decades ago, the Sunday Independent has learned.

Senior republican sources said the arsenal - which consists mainly of never-used assault rifles and medium machineguns - was supplied to the leadership of the terror group in the 1980s by the North Korean government and the old Soviet KGB and were hidden in specially built bunkers.
Only a handful of top people in the organisation knew the whereabouts of the weapons bunkers.
The weapons were to be used if there was an outbreak of major Protestant-Catholic conflict in the North, in which event the dumps would be opened and the guns distributed for the 'defence' of Catholic areas. The idea behind the project stemmed from what was seen as the IRA's failure to protect Catholic working class areas of Belfast from invasion by Protestant mobs at the outset of the Troubles.
Sources said the 'Doomsday' arsenal was assembled and 'buried' in places where they could be quickly accessed in the event of all-out sectarian war. One source told the Sunday Independent there was an awareness of one bunker containing 500 rifles within easy reach of a Catholic area of Belfast, and there was said to be '10 times' more further accessible in more distant dumps.
The 'doomsday' bunker secret was kept "very tight" within a handful of Official IRA figures, some of whom have since died, and secret locations of the dumps may go to the grave with the remaining few who know of their whereabouts.
One of the figures said to have knowledge of some of the weapons was Dessie 'The Devil' O'Hagan, who died in Downpatrick, Co Down earlier this month at the age of 81.
Another was Tomas MacGiolla, who was a senior Official IRA figure, leader of the Workers' Party and TD who died in February 2010 aged 86.
The Officials, as they were known, had close ties to Communist Bloc countries including the Soviet Union, East Germany and North Korea who were responsible for supplying weapons and funds to the shadowy group.
Official IRA members travelled to the Soviet Union and North Korea for training and were also supplied with funds and material from the KGB's secret assassination directorates. Sources told the Sunday Independent that Soviet-manufactured poisons were supplied to the Officials and used in a number of cases to assassinate people accused of being 'enemies of the Movement'.
The Official IRA and its political wings went through various splits and changes over the decades and a core group in Northern Ireland along with members from the Republic split away at about the time of the mid-1990s ceasefires by the other republican and loyalist groups.
An ex-Official IRA group styling itself as the Official Republican Movement (ORM) broke away in the 1990s and became the first of the groups in the North to publicly decommission their weapons, supplying images of this event to the media in February 2010.
Sources said the reason the weapons were never decommissioned was to do with the fact that there was a policy in place of denying the military wing, which became known as "Organisation 'B'", actually existed. "If it (the Official IRA) didn't exist, it couldn't have any weapons and couldn't decommission them," one source told the Sunday Independent.
The Official IRA declared a ceasefire in the early 1970s as the Troubles, driven by the Provisional IRA, increasingly turned into an ethnic conflict in the North. Before that the Official IRA was at the forefront in gun battles with the British Army and loyalists, mainly in Belfast.
After its ceasefire, the group was involved in killings and maintained a unit dedicated to carrying out major armed robberies to fund the increasingly political direction the movement was taken.
It was also involved in the biggest currency counterfeiting operation ever undercovered by garda in the 1980s and carried this on in conjunction with contacts in the KGB and East German Stasi up to the collapse of the Soviet Bloc. Former Officials said the secret weapons bunkers are "beyond time", and that if they still exist should be opened and the guns safely disposed of.
Sunday Independent

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/n...pon-31284536.ht

IRA dissidents develop rocket-propelled anti-tank weapon
Terrorists building armour-piercing weapons and missiles, say gardai.

BY TOM BRADY – 08 JUNE 2015

IRA renegades have honed their engineering skills to create homemade anti-tank type weapons that can penetrate armour, it can be revealed.

Gardai have uncovered evidence confirming that dissident republicans have made significant progress in developing their terror technology.

Recent attacks by the dissident groups in Northern Ireland heightened fears among senior anti-terrorist police officers on both sides of the border that their technology advances were likely to signal a new spate of attacks on PSNI vehicles and stations.

But the scale of their technological advances was not fully known until Garda finds in dissident hides were forensically examined.

A senior officer said last night: "This is a very worrying development and there are serious concerns on both sides of the border.

"The seizures have undoubtedly delivered a major setback to their deadly plans and the operation must be regarded as one of the most important strikes against the dissidents for several years.

"But it also demonstrates that, despite seizures and arrests in the past, they are continuing to develop their bombing capacity and manufacture home-made weapons," he added.

The evidence shows that the "engineering" section of one breakaway group, known as ONH which stands for Oglaigh na hEireann, has been focusing on a new rocket-propelled anti-tank weapon, which can cause more death and destruction than their previous campaign of mortar attacks. Since 2013, there has been evidence that the various groups have been improving the capacity of their mortars, but the vast majority of their attacks have either been foiled or unsuccessful.

It is estimated by security officials in Northern Ireland that for every attack carried out by dissidents, four others were thwarted. Many of the home-made missiles were manufactured in the border region, south and north, but gardai have also uncovered bomb factories deeper into the Republic, where the terror technicians were concentrating on boosting their electronic capabilities.

Recent evidence indicates that they have been working on improving remote detonation of improvised explosive devices.

And it is understood that some of the electronic component equipment discovered in the recent searches was not known previously to have been in the possession of the dissidents.

In May, the 'new IRA' was behind a failed attempt to kill police officers in Ardoyne.

It had planned on firing a mortar at a PSNI patrol as it passed along the Crumlin Road.

But the device, positioned at the top of Brompton Park, failed to go off, leaving the dissidents red-faced.

And in February, a mortar left in Currynierin, Londonderry, caused a two-day security alert.

The PSNI is dealing with around three terrorist attacks every week.

The IRA's most devastating mortar attack took place at Newry RUC station in 1985, when nine police officers were killed and 37 people were injured.

New generation of bomb makers being primed to wreak havoc

A huge haul of explosives and bomb making equipment seized in recent operations by the Garda Special Branch has resulted in a detailed forensic examination and analysis by the force's technical bureau and the Irish army's ordnance officers.

Apart from the sheer size of the seizures, it is also the quality of the finds that is arousing the keen interest of security agencies.

A study of devices used by the dissidents over the past couple of years showed that the IRA renegades were improving their capacity to launch attacks, involving improvised explosive devices, in Northern Ireland.

The recent finds, however, bring that capacity to a new level and reveal a sophistication not seen there previously, with workshop development of electronic components to the efforts to create rocket-propelled grenades.

The initial signs of improved capacity, revealed in 2013, led to speculation that the dissidents had recruited the help of former IRA bomb makers, who had been lured out of retirement.

But more recently there has been evidence that a new generation of bomb makers has been trained up.

The failure of the dissidents to bring about sufficient improvement in their weaponry, allied to the excellent intelligence that has led to a string of significant seizures, has so far saved the lives of PSNI officers, who have been targeted in the attacks, as well as civilians caught up on the periphery.

Gardai are satisfied that their recent strikes against the ONH will severely curb their plans to intensify their bombing campaign.

But officers accept that the setbacks are only temporary and further efforts will be made by the terrorists to wreak havoc in Northern Ireland.

tom brady