Crime World

The daughter of convicted drug dealer John Gilligan has issued High Court proceedings over her dole payments which have been stopped since last year. In a move straight out of her fathers rule book she claims her social welfare applications were refused after the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) unlawfully intervened. She says she is not involved in criminal activity and is “at a loss” as to why she i...

The Encrochat phone hack which has resulted in thousands of arrests and convictions across Europe has been described as a pinnacle moment in the fight against modern organised crime. But how did police use the intel that they received every day over a three month period when they got a window into the business of crime. Nicola speaks with Mobeen Azhar whose new BBC Gangster presents seri...

Eight years after the murder of Real IRA man Vinny Ryan on a Dublin street his comrades have taken to social media to honour him as a ‘republican hero.’ But who was Vinny Ryan and why did he follow his brother Alan’s footsteps to a life in a terror outfit and ultimately to an early grave? Nicola speaks with Niall Donald about the murder of the Ryan brothers and those who still remember them as mar...

Children are now being radicalised by drug gangs according to new reports from Europol which state that kids as young as 12 are being brainwashed to carry out serious crimes on behalf of older mob bosses. So how does that play out in Ireland and do we have enough systems in place to protect vulnerable children. Nicola and Niall speak with Criminologist Trina O’Connor about protecting kids from gan...

A supergrass trial ends in a not guilty verdict. The families of innocent victims Eamon Fox and Gary Convie, two innocent catholic workmen murdered almost 30 years ago are left devastated. A self professed loyalist killer turned witness, Gary Haggarty, is told he is unreliable and a ‘deeply flawed individual.’ And Jimmy ‘Shades’ Smyth, the accused who has already been convicted of murder and prove...

Notorious cocaine boss Ridouan Taghi has been jailed for life after a mammoth four year trial in Amsterdam but he leaves behind a legacy of terror that will not be forgotten into the future. Nicola speaks with Jan Meeus, an author, podcaster and a crime correspondent with NRC in the Netherlands about the one time street dealer who, just like Pablo Escobar, took on the pillars of a state. They disc...

A convicted killer has vowed to continue to agitate for his freedom twelve years after he brutally killed 25-year-old mum Anna Finnegan. Vessel Jahiri has lost his appeal against his conviction on what Judges detailed in a damning judgement and inadmissible hearsay, unsupported assertion and irrelevant material. Yet still, the 43-year-old Kosovan has vowed to fight on layering ever more trauma on...

Two Kerry men charged in relation to the biggest ever haul of crystal meth in the country have appeared in court via video link. Nathan McDonnell, 43, the owner of Ballyseedy Garden Centre is charged with the possession of drugs worth more than 13k at the garden centre between October 27 and February 12. James Leen, age 41, from Listowel is facing two charges one of importation and sale of crystal...

The daughter of an innocent man shot dead by the Kinahan Organised Crime Group directed her victim impact statement at the man known as Mr Nobody and told him he had taken her past, present and future. Donna Kirwan was making her comments at Declan Brady’s sentence hearing. He has pleaded to facilitating a criminal organisation in the murder of Noel Duck Egg Kirwan in December 2016. He is already...

The fate of Limericks mobsters are being left more and more in the hands of the court as police crackdowns on money launderers, hit teams and even debt collectors continue. Nicola speaks with Eamon Dillon about the jailing of two Larrys, the dramatic plea changes, and one senior drug dealer who had a lucky day in the Court of Criminal Appeal. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more informa...

Former Republic of Ireland footballer Anthony Stokes is doing porridge in a Scottish jail after handing himself up to police after failing to appear in court to be sentenced for abusing his ex-partner by text. Stokes father John owned the Players Lounge Pub when an attempt was made on the life of Real IRA boss Alan Ryan there. The 35-year-old, once tipped as Ireland’s greatest footballing hope, ha...

Murdered Hutch associate Jason ‘Buda’ Molyneaux died from gunshot wounds as his mother Liz begged him to be strong. Harrowing evidence was heard at a Coroners Court hearing of the last moments of his life while an investigation into his murder is ongoing. Nicola speaks with Niall Donald about the murder of ‘Buda’ and the complex double crosses and gangland games of lies and treachery that led to h...

The sister of gang boss Christy Keane has admitted to money laundering after a court heard that €124,000 in cash was found in her home. Sandra Hehir will face sentencing but says she is now predominately estranged from her siblings and works as a hairdresser. Nicola speaks with with Niall Donald about a sophisticated crime outfit which emerged from the warring gangs of Limerick and the risks of st...

An extraordinary drug seizure of more than €30 million in meth at Cork port has resulted in a number of searches around premises in Kerry, Cork and Waterford and a focus on the Irish links with the notorious Sinaloa Cartel. Nicola speaks with Niall Donald about Mexico’s biggest drug mob and its Irish connections. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Taliban ban on poppy cultivation in Afghanistan along with ambitious Mexican Cartels now based in Europe mean experts are forecasting a perfect storm. Nicola speaks with Niall Donald about the next deadly threat from a potent factory-produced drug which has become the biggest killer of young users in the US. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A network of seemingly legitimate businessmen are under investigation by the Gardai in a massive crackdown on the laundering of dirty money. This week a businessman, Wesley Williams, was jailed for his part in a laundering scam involving euro 1.4 million in cash. The married father of four was also recently named in CAB proceedings against Marcus Sweeney’s Evergreen Wealth Management Property Hold...

A gangster named in court as being involved in the murder of gang boss Martin ‘Marlo’ Hyland and innocent plumber Anthony Campbell is set for release from prison more than a decade after being jailed. So who is John Mangan? And how was he linked to the 2006 murder of 20-year-old Campbell, a totally innocent young man caught up in a deadly underworld takeover? Nicola speaks with Niall Donald about...

A stunning mansion in the County Louth countryside called The White House has been identified by the Criminal Assets Bureau in a Proceeds of Crime case against a Moldovan couple. Natalie and Edward Chiper were arrested in 2019 after almost €1 million worth of drugs were found on the premises. But despite spending time in custody the charges against them were dropped. Now the glamorous couple will...

Secret files relating to the operations of a County Kerry wing of the notorious Sinaloa Cartel show how they shipped 6 tonnes of cocaine into Europe over the course of one year. Headed by former Kilorglan schoolboy Morris O’Shea Salazar, whose Mexican mother has family ties to Joachim El Chapo Guzman’s sons, the Sinaloa cell was uncovered by both the DEA and later during the Encrochat hack. Nicola...

Northern Ireland’s much anticipated Kenova Report is set to be released next month after confirmation that no prosecutions are to be pursued. The report centres around the activities of the notorious Freddie Scapattici, the British Army’s top agent in the north during the troubles. Nicola talks with Belfast Telegraph Crime Correspondent Allison Morris about the incredible story of Stakeknife and t...

Two notorious Limerick brothers were found not guilty of assaulting a sulky driver and causing him harm after he dramatically changed his statement and said he’d ’identified the wrong men.’ Vincent and Jonathan Collopy members of the notorious Keane Collopy faction walked free after they were found not guilty. So what was behind the extraordinary circumstances of the case and what organised crime...

Eight years since the murder of David Byrne at the Regency Hotel his family laid floral tributes at the spot where he died. But what has happened to the key players who were there that day and what future lies in store for many who then felt untouchable? Nicola speaks to Niall Donald about an anniversary, an ongoing police operation and a victim whose death was a seismic moment in the history of o...

A convicted dog fighting boss on the run from UK authorities is now facing a prison stretch in Ireland after being caught with €1.9 million worth of cocaine. John Knibbs was banned from breeding dogs and disqualified from owning an animal in the UK. But the father of four changed his name by deed pole and moved to Ireland where he set up new premises in County Kildare. In recent weeks journalist E...

Noel Long was charged with killing Nora Sheehan in 1981, but he walked free. He was charged again in 2022. As his trial for murder gets underway, Nicola and the Crime World team meet Julieanna Moore Watkins, Long's sister, who tells us about her brother's long history of violence. All episodes of Beast: The Murder of Nora Sheehan are available to listen to now wherever you get your podcasts. Prese...

A detailed structure of the Kinahan Organisation has been read into a court for the first time during the trial of a man accused of buying a mobile phone top-up for mob lieutenant Sean McGovern. Evidence given by Superintendent David Gallagher on the command and structure of the Cartel gives an interesting insight into their paramilitary style set up with sub-cells and command structures in Irelan...