Gang member who placed tracker device on rival jailed for 6½ years

A gang member involved in a foiled Kinahan Cartel plot to murder James ‘Mago’ Gately, during which he placed a tracker device on the rival Hutch member’s car, has been jailed by the Special Criminal Court for six-and-a-half years.

Sentencing Douglas Glynn at the non-jury court today, presiding judge Mr Justice Tony Hunt said the three judges were satisfied that the management and planting of the tracking device by Glynn placed him “higher” in the criminal organisation than his co-accused David Duffy and Stephen Fowler.

The court noted that the criminal organisation which Glynn had assisted is particularly serious, well organised and well financed.

Last November at the non-jury court, Glynn changed his plea to guilty just over a week after he went on trial and admitted placing a tracker device on Gately’s car.

Gately had been warned by gardaí­ of a threat to his life from criminals who believed him to be involved in the Regency Hotel murder of Kinahan Cartel associate David Byrne in February 2016.

The court has heard in previous related cases that there was “ongoing targeting” of Gately in the context of a feud between the Hutch and Kinahan crime groups. Estonian hitman Imre Arakas was brought to Ireland in 2017 to carry out the murder of Gately before he was apprehended by gardaí.

Detective Sergeant David Carolan previously told the Special Criminal Court he was aware that Gately was involved “in a feud with the Kinahan organised crime group” and that Gately “had a wider association with the Hutch organised crime group”. He said that Gately was “being targeted by the Kinahan organised crime group at the time”.

Glynn (37) of Fitzgibbon Court, Dublin 1, was re-arraigned on November 17th and pleaded guilty to participating in activities of a criminal organisation, contrary to Section 72 (1) (A) of the Criminal Justice Act. When first arraigned at the three-judge court on November 9th, Glynn had pleaded not guilty.

The specifics of the charge were that on dates between December 7th, 2016, and April 6th, 2017, inclusive, both within and outside the State and with knowledge of a criminal organisation and with the intent of enhancing the ability of the said criminal organisation or any of its members to commit a serious offence, namely the murder of James Gately, he did participate in or contribute to activities connected with the said offence.

‘Ongoing plan’

Before delivering the sentence today, Mr Justice Hunt said the offence arose out of an “ongoing plan” to murder Gately. Gardaí were not aware of these operations until April 2017, he said, and it was only made clear with the arrival of Arakas on a flight into Dublin from Alicante.

Passing sentence, Mr Justice Hunt said Glynn was captured on CCTV wearing a distinctive hat with ear flaps as he placed a tracking device on Gately’s Toyota car.

Det Sgt O’Leary said there was an exchange between “Oscar” and another individual about getting a tracker on a car belonging to Gately’s sister on January 16th 2017 and this was consistent with a tracker being put on her car the next day. There were also questions coming from “Oscar” about the seizing of tracking devices by gardaí on February 23rd, 2017.

At Monday’s sentencing hearing, Mr Justice Hunt noted one of the Blackberry devices revealed that ‘Oscar’ had also sent a message saying: “Have you still got the charging pad off that”. The next message said: “Okay, I need to grab that at some stage tomorrow”.

Det Sgt O’Leary, the court previously heard, put Glynn “slightly above” David Duffy and Fowler in the criminal organisation.

The court set the headline sentence at 10 years imprisonment.

In mitigation, the judge noted that Glynn’s plea was entered after the trial began but also came after the service of a considerable amount of evidence of the defence. He said it could therefore be treated as an early plea.

Having regard to the gravity of the offence, the judge said the maximum sentence was 15 years in prison. The aggravating factors in the case were that the criminal organisation which Glynn had assisted is particularly serious, well organised and well financed.

The very serious offence of murder had been contemplated by the criminal organisation, the judge said, and it did not take place solely because of the early intervention from gardaí.

Glynn has 16 previous convictions mostly for minor road offences. He has one conviction for possession of drugs for sale and supply.

Duffy (33) of Greenfort Lawns, Clondalkin, Dublin 22 and Fowler (62), of Blakestown Cottages in Clonsilla, Dublin 15 have both already been jailed for providing logistical support to the plot to murder Gately.

Mr Justice Hunt, sitting with Judge Sarah Berkeley and Judge Cormac Dunne, sentenced Glynn to seven years and six months imprisonment with the final year suspended, backdated to December 31st 2021, when he went into custody.