Limerick gang member Ger Dundon jailed for 15 years in UK

Limerick criminal Ger Dundon, a member of the notorious McCarthy-Dundon gang, has been jailed for a total of 15 years in the UK, including 10 years for his role in the violent abduction of two men in a bid to extort more than £300,000.

During the crime Dundon had threatened to “shoot two dudes in the head” if the money was not paid, the trial heard.

Dundon (38), who has lived in Hackney, London, as well as Hyde Road, Limerick, was last jailed in the Republic for four years in 2018 for possession of a sawn-off shotgun and leading the Garda’s Emergency Response Unit on a high-speed chase.

He was also one of the men arrested when a fellow gangland criminal, Dubliner Robbie Lawlor, was shot dead in Belfast in April 2020. Dundon was named during a bail hearing in Belfast as one of three suspects for the murder.

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Dundon – who had changed his name by deed poll to Darren McClean – was jailed on Friday at Wood Green Crown Court, London, for 10 years for his role in the abduction of two brothers from Stoke-on-Trent in 2020, and was also jailed for five years for other, unrelated, offences including a firearms charge.

In January he was found guilty of two charges of conspiracy to blackmail and one count of conspiracy to falsely imprison and was sentenced on Friday by Judge John Dodds after a delay of two months when a key barrister in the case took ill.

The two victims in the case travelled from Stoke-on-Trent to London in July, 2020, and were subjected to blackmail and threats, with large amounts of money – more than £300,000 – demanded to secure the release of one of the brothers. The victims were blindfolded during the ordeal and threatened they would be shot in the head.

However, on July 16th armed police moved in on a yellow transit van as it left a halting site in Cambridgeshire. As they did so, Dundon was driving the vehicle and tried to destroy a mobile phone, which was later found to have been used to make the ransom demands.

The man who was being held by Dundon and his accomplices was found in the back of the van on a mattress. Dundon told police the man was a friend of his, though the victim reported being threatened and racially abused.

Sentencing Dundon, Judge John Dodds recommended he serve at least half of the sentence imposed before he could be considered for release. It also emerged during the trial Dundon pleaded guilty last August to possessing a 9mm pistol and 12 bullets discovered at a property in Hackney.

[ Ger Dundon jailed for gun possession and dangerous driving ]

Deputy senior investigating officer Det Sgt Garry Jackson of Staffordshire Police said the abduction of the two brothers, who cannot be named by order of the court, was “a terrifying experience for the victims”.

“It also had a profound impact on their family members and friends. The investigation was incredibly complex and involved a number of police forces who supported our efforts, including the Metropolitan Police and Cambridgeshire Constabulary.

“We’re pleased that McClean [Dundon] will now be serving a substantial sentence which reflects the seriousness of this disturbing crime.”

While five other men arrested and charged with offences linked to the kidnapping also went on trial, they were found not guilty.

Meath man Cornelius Price, one of the gang leaders who was involved in the drug-related gun feud in Drogheda, Co Louth, was also involved in the plot and was a close gangland associate of Dundon’s. However, he was diagnosed with cancer and was unable to stand trial. He died in a British hospital in January, aged 41 years. Price was an enemy of 2020 Belfast murder victim Lawlor and it was suspected he was involved in organising the plot to kill the Dubliner.

The McCarthy-Dundon gang, of which Dundon is a member, was centrally involved in the Limerick feud, which began with the 2003 murder of rival drug dealer Kieran Keane (36) and continued for about a decade.