A SIGNIFICANT armed garda presence is expected in north Dublin today for the funeral of gangland thug Michael ‘Mad Mickey' Devoy who was shot dead 10 days ago.
The funeral takes place at St Canice's Church in Finglas, and it is understood that Devoy (41) will later be cremated at Glasnevin.
He was waked last night at his family home in Balbutcher Drive in Ballymun. One of his closest friends acted as bouncer on the door.
The Herald has learned that the bulky, 23-year-old doorman – who was the victim of a serious assault in 2008 – was close to Devoy and his family.
The garda investigation into the murder is continuing, with a senior source revealing that detectives have raided and searched three houses. No arrests have yet been made.
Gardai have been working on the theory that a Co Louth hitman carried out the murder on behalf of the Greg Lynch drugs gang after Devoy was identified by them as being involved in a botched hit on Lynch last October.
A special policing plan has been put in place for today’s funeral, with armed and public order units in attendance and members of the Emergency Response unit located nearby.
One person who will not be there is Devoy’s younger brother Derek, known as Bottler, who failed to secure temporary release from Mountjoy Prison.
“It would be way too much of a security risk – we think that even he knows that,” a senior source said.
Volatile hood Bottler (31) is not due to be released from jail until February of next year. He is serving sentences for firearms and other offences.
In 2007 he was jailed for seven years for the attempted armed robbery of a post office in Balbriggan, north Dublin, the year before.
He was given extra jail time in November 2007 for the non-fatal drive-by shooting of two of his neighbours in Ballymun in September, 2005.
Devoy has had multiple serious disciplinary issues since being locked up, but sources said he has not been in trouble since last October.
At one stage in 2009 he was even transferred to a segregation area of Portlaoise Prison.
Bottler has more than two dozen convictions and is an associate of the two main suspects in the murders of Martin ‘Marlo' Hyland and innocent young plumber Anthony Campbell.
He also has close links with other Ballymun criminals and the Finglas gang who are suspected of the gun murder last summer of Tallaght criminal Carl Wynne.
“He is a dangerous and volatile criminal and despite being locked up he has continued to influence things on the outside,” a source said.
“He was absolutely distraught that his older brother was killed and he went mad when he was told the news in prison.”
