Dublin's Finglas can ill-afford the kind of reduced funding being imposed across An Garda Síochána, writes CONOR LALLY
IT IS a mark of how busy gardaí in Finglas have become that, of the 14 gun murders carried out in the State so far this year, Finglas’s biggest gang are the chief suspects for five (see panel).
Three other men have been stabbed to death in Finglas gardaí’s catchment area since the start of the year.
The gang behind most of the gun violence was once led by drug dealer Martin “Marlo” Hyland.
In December 2006 Hyland’s own gang decided to kill him. They shot him dead in an attack that also took the life of plumber’s apprentice Anthony Campbell.
With Hyland out of the way some of his henchmen assumed control and the gang has gone on a sustained killing spree ever since.
As well as the five murders this year and those of Campbell and Hyland in 2006, the group is also suspected of carrying out the murders of John Daly in 2007 and Paul “Farmer” Martin last August.
In early 2006, while still led by Hyland, the gang shot dead drug dealers Patrick Harte and Paul Reay in separate attacks.
In November 2006, Hyland’s gang helped carry out the murder in Swords, Co Dublin, of Latvian Baiba Saulite on behalf of a man who wanted her dead.
That means the Finglas-based Hyland gang are the chief suspects for 12 gun murders in less than three years, five of them this year.
But apart from this grouping there is plenty of other serious violence keeping Finglas gardaí busy. In January a long running local feud saw three gun attacks in Finglas in three days. Two men were wounded, neither fatally, and a house was sprayed with automatic gun fire.
That feud, between young men regarded as relatively minor criminal figures, began in 2007 when a drug dealer was shot. A leading member of one of the factions is aged 17.
In a Garda operation following the three January shootings two minors from Finglas were arrested in possession of a revolver and cannabis valued at €40,000.
Away from the gun violence, another Finglas murder inquiry was begun when the stabbed remains of Peter Gunn (28) were found at Dunsoghly Lane in January.
In May the stabbed remains of 28-year-old David Sharkey were found in the boot of a car in a Finglas halting site. A man has been charged with that killing.
Last Friday Maurice Martin (21) was stabbed in a frenzied attack in Finglas. He stumbled wounded to the patch of grass where he collapsed and died at the junction of Cardiffsbridge Road and Tolka Valley Road, a busy residential area.
There have been countless other non-fatal stabbings and shootings, not to mention major drug seizures, in Finglas of late.
In coming weeks a new Garda station will be opened in the northwest Dublin suburb. No doubt it will be pointed to by Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern as an example of continued expenditure on the Garda despite the recession. However, Garda overtime has been cut and recruitment stopped, all to save money. It is crime hotspots like Finglas that can ill afford cuts to front-line policing at a time when serious violence is becoming ever more frequent.
2009 gun killings
January 7th: Michael "Roly" Cronin (35) and James Moloney (26) shot dead in Summerhill, Dublin. Killed as part of a feud with a Finglas gang once led by murdered drug dealer Marlo Hyland.
January 19th: Stephen O'Halloran (20) shot dead in a car outside a house at Kilmartin Drive, Tallaght. Two other men are wounded but survive. Man has been charged.
January 20th: Graham McNally (34), Finglas, shot dead near Finglas. A member of the gang once led by Marlo Hyland, McNally was shot by his own gang.
February 9th: Michael Hendrick, (36) Alpine Heights, Clondalkin, shot dead at Melrose Park, Clondalkin. Drug related.
February 18th: Johnny Carroll (33), originally from Dublin's south inner city, shot dead in the Coombe. A drugs importer, he was killed by his own associates.
March 3rd: Michael Murray (41) shot at Kippure Park, Finglas. He was involved in a feud with the gang once led by Marlo Hyland.
March 13th: Shay O'Byrne (27), Drimnagh, shot dead in Tallaght. His killing is linked to a gangland feud between rival factions in Crumlin and Drimnagh.
March 20th: Mechanic Liam Carroll (42) found shot dead at his home in Rathfarnham, Dublin. While not involved in gang crime gardaí believe he had clashed with criminal elements.
March 30th: The remains of drug dealer David Fred Lynch (26) found dumped in his native Darndale. He had been shot as part of a localised drugs feud.
April 9th: Businessman Roy Collins (34) shot dead in his amusement arcade at Roxboro Shopping Centre. Man has been charged.
May 7th: John "BJ" Clarke (21), Darndale, shot dead outside an apartment block in Artane. Two men with him are wounded. Clarke was involved in a number of gangland disputes.
May 29th: Charles Sinanapayen (32), originally from Bordeaux, France, is shot dead in his apartment in Bray. Man has been charged.
June 12th: The remains of Paul Smyth (34), Finglas, Dublin, found dumped near Balbriggan. Shot in the head as part of a feud with the gang once led by Hyland.