Pubdate: Sat, 06 May 2000
Source: Irish Times, The (Ireland)
Copyright: 2000 The Irish Times
Contact:  11-15 D'Olier St, Dublin 2, Ireland
Fax: + 353 1 671 9407
Website: http://www.ireland.com/
Author: Jim Cusack, in Scheveningen

DUTCH LINKS TO NINE GANGS HERE

There are nine criminal gangs in Dublin with links to the drugs trade in 
the Netherlands, according to criminal intelligence reports, including one 
run by former associates of the gang which killed Veronica Guerin.

The three Irishmen murdered here a week ago are believed to have been 
involved with one of the gangs and may have been blamed for passing 
information to police leading to drugs seizures in the past two years.

According to Garda intelligence, 13 criminal gangs in Dublin are involved 
in drugs; nine of these have contacts in the Netherlands, the main source 
of cannabis, cocaine and synthetic drugs such as ecstasy, amphetamine and 
LSD for Irish criminals.

For two decades, the Dublin gangs have been placing members in the 
Netherlands to set up links with drugs suppliers.

The best-documented operation was that run by the gang which killed the 
journalist Veronica Guerin in June 1996. That gang began importing drugs on 
a major scale in 1994 after the Dublin criminal, Martin Cahill, put up a 
substantial sum to start up the business.

Cahill was subsequently killed by the gang rather than pay him what was 
seen as an exorbitant return he was seeking on his seed money.

The gang bought cannabis from a Dutch source who had a warehouse near 
Schipol Airport and it was imported into Ireland through a shipping company 
in Cork. There it was collected by van and delivered to the gang's 
warehouse in Harold's Cross, Dublin.

In three years, the gang may have shifted some pounds 130 million worth of 
the drug in street value terms, where cannabis is finally sold in gramme 
deals for about pounds 10. Despite being broken up by Garda action after 
the Guerin murder, gang members returned to the Netherlands where they 
attempted to restart their highly lucrative trade.

A close associate of the gang leader had tried, in the past two years, to 
re-establish the business and is believed to have succeeded in importing as 
much as tens of millions of pounds worth of the drug. However, two major 
shipments were seized and the gang has now been largely broken up as a 
result of action by Dutch and Irish police.

It is now thought possible that other members of this gang might have been 
seeking revenge for the police successes, which have almost certainly come 
about through the use of informants.

Garda sources believe that while there have been major successes against 
the Dublin gangs with Dutch drugs links, the illicit trade in drugs will 
continue.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Jo-D