The man once accused of killing journalist Veronica Guerin was jailed for eight years in London today for masterminding a £10 million “honey trap” kidnap plot.
Patrick Holland (68) jailed for eight years in London today
Patrick “Dutchy” Holland, who has always denied any involvement in the 1996 killing, was secretly filmed and taped planning to abduct a businessman and hold him prisoner for a massive ransom.
At the heart of the scheme was a 24-year-old “sex bait” who was ordered to pose as a work-hungry secretary, London’s Blackfriars Crown Court heard.
The idea was once she had got a job at the would-be victim’s company she would use her charms to lure him from the safety of his office and lead him “to the slaughterhouse”.
But the potentially lucrative enterprise fell at the first hurdle when the apparently eager job applicant was told there were no vacancies.
Before they could come up with an alternative plan, 68-year-old Holland and his four accomplices were arrested by armed police.
The teetotal pensioner, of Russett Way, Lewisham, south-east London was unanimously found guilty of conspiracy to kidnap Nasir Zahid between March 10th and May 2nd last year.
24-year-old “sex lure” Khan Coombs, of no fixed address was jailed for four years, lorry driver John McDonnell (45) of Russett Way, Lewisham got eight years, while lorry driver Gerrard Booth (47) of Kilbroney Park, Rostrevor, Co Down, was jailed for seven years.
Simon Young (38) of Central Avenue, Welling, Kent was also jailed. Young, who earlier admitted possessing .357 Magnum calibre ammunition without a certificate, was also found guilty by the 10-strong jury of having a firearm — an ME38 blank firing revolver which had been converted to shoot live rounds. He was jailed for a total of 11 years.
Passing sentence Judge Henry Blacksell, QC, said all those in the dock were “thoroughly dishonest and villainous people”.
Turning first to Holland, he continued: “I have no doubt at all about your important role in the commission of this offence.
“You are a man who has been associated with serious crime over a long period of time and have served long periods of imprisonment. You are reaching the end of your life and it may be that you end it in prison, I know not.”
The judge said all the evidence pointed to the fact that “this offence you helped to organise was carefully planned and was prepared for execution and you assembled this particular team with the help of McDonnell.
“There may be another, who is still on the continent, who had the majority of the funding, but you were an essential part of it.”
He went on to describe McDonnell as “thoroughly amoral”. He had clearly recruited Coombs, who “knew she was involved in something which was going to produce substantial gain.
”He didn’t care and you didn’t care." The judge added Young, too, was a “necessary part of the enterprise”.
For Holland, today’s sentence will be his fourth lengthy spell behind bars during a criminal career stretching back decades.
In 1981 he was given seven years for an armed robbery at the Berkeley Court Hotel in Ballsbridge, Dublin. Less than a decade later he got 10 years for possessing possession explosives, detonators and fuse wire.
Then in 1997, not long after Ms Guerin was killed by a motorcycle pillion passenger, he was arrested for possession of 10kgs of cannabis resin.
His trial at the Special Criminal Court heard the garda who arrested him believed he killed the 37-year-old crime reporter.
Holland, originally from west Dublin, was jailed for 20 years. That was reduced to 12 on appeal, but after three years remission he was released from Portlaoise prison in April, 2006.
Interviewed shortly afterwards, Holland denied any involvement in the shooting and named a former Army marksman as Ms Guerin’s killer.
“I haven’t killed anybody ever. There is no blood on my hands,” he insisted.
During Holland’s recent two-month trial, the jury saw lengthy surveillance evidence of him meeting his alleged paymaster, Patrick Van Cantfort, a wealthy European businessman nicknamed “The Banker” and currently being sought by police.