Crime World Long Read: Thomas 'Bomber' Kavanagh - from low-level dealer to Ireland's most-feared mob boss (Part 1)

She was a fraudster who almost bankrupted the tight-knit company she worked for, and with the £1.9million she stole from Northern Mouldings Limited she lived a lifestyle akin to a Hollywood superstar.When Julie McBrien, also known as Julie Hogg, was eventually caught she spent years convincing a court that she shouldn’t be named in the media despite her litany of crimes and the eye-watering money she spent on fashion, beauty, jewellery and holidays.But tenacious court reporter Tanya Fowles believed McBrien, who once faked a cancer diagnosis to spend days off work in a luxurious spa, should not be granted anonymity and today tells Nicola Tallant about her own quest for justice to identify her as the thief who almost brought down a family firm. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

9 Dec 202127min

The trial of Ghislaine Maxwell in New York is finally underway after years of allegations about her relationship with paedophile Jeffrey Epstein and claims that she helped him procure young girls for sex.It has been a sensational fall from grace for the daughter of disgraced newspaper guru Robert Maxwell, who led a life of privilege that few could imagine. In the dock at a US District Court in Manhattan, Maxwell is pleading innocence to charges relating to the sexual abuse of four young girls.Nicola Tallant talks to journalist Brad Hunter, the National Crime Columnist for the Toronto Sun, who has been writing about the story of Epstein and Maxwell for years and who is now covering the court case. He describes the evidence heard so far, the appearance of a prison-weary Maxwell, and his own views on why she is a figure who has garnered little sympathy from the public. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

7 Dec 202124min

They spent years in the prison system for a string of offences linked to their chronic addiction problems, but today James Leonard and Timmy Long are podcast sensations and their show 'The Two Norries' has been hailed for tackling issues of mental health, addiction and social issues surrounding crime.In recent months James and Timmy have been recording a ground-breaking series of interviews with serving prisoners and now they tell Nicola Tallant what it is like to be back behind bars.Is prison the holiday camp that many believe it to be? And are recent photographs and videos taken on smuggled smartphones within Irish jails a true reflection of what it is like to be locked up. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

4 Dec 202150min

New legislation which introduces the tagging of sex offenders will now deal with the complex issues of releasing rapists and child abusers back into the communities.But does the newly-passed Sex Offenders Amendment Bill go far enough when it comes to protecting the public from dangerous predators.Nicola Tallant talks to journalist Eamon Dillon about the new laws and what they will mean for those completing their sentences. We also look at some of the heinous crimes of the 120 sex offenders who will be released from prison by the end of this year. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2 Dec 202132min

Veteran criminal Gerry ‘The Monk’ Hutch has been given permission to take a High Court challenge against the jurisdiction of the Special Criminal Court to hear his trial for the murder of David Byrne at the Regency Hotel in Dublin five years ago.He claims that the decision to try him before the non-jury court is a ‘significant curtailment of his rights’. A similar challenge is also being taken by former Sinn Fein Councillor Jonathan Dowdall, who is also facing trial for the murder of ByrneBut what are these challenges and what is the background to the existence of the court.Nicola Tallant is joined by Sunday World deputy editor Niall Donald to discuss the actions against the long established court, which has investigated countless gangland crime cases in recent years. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

30 Nov 202125min

When killer Joe O’Reilly bludgeoned his wife Rachel to death at their home in the Naul, Co Dublin, in October 2004 he thought he’d get away with murder.But years after he was convicted to a life sentence for his horrific crime, nobody could have expected that the former advertising executive - who is yet again to be the subject of a new documentary to be screened on RTE - would continue to fascinate the publicSo what is it about Ordinary Joe and his plot to kill seventeen years ago that is rarely far from the headlines? Why do people still want answers to his awful crime?Nicola Tallant talks to journalist Jenny Friel, whose book 'The Suspect' is the definitive account of murder in the Naul. She tells me about her extraordinary meetings with the killer as he protested his innocence, the gruesome murder tours he took her on in his home and how his tall tales and desire for recognition eventually backfired on him in spectacular fashion. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

27 Nov 202148min

It was planned as the Kinahan Mafia’s trophy kill, with only Daniel Kinahan and Thomas ‘Bomber’ Kavanagh's most trusted circle of lieutenants privy to the plans.But, in an incredible turn of events, the 2017 plot to assassinate Hutch target James ‘Mago’ Gately at his Newry apartment became the undoing of the most powerful crime gang in Ireland.Last week, criminal Douglas Glynn became the fifth man convicted in relation to the foiled plot to kill and Nicola Tallant chats with Sunday World Deputy Editor Niall Donald about the seminal moment in the State’s fight against the powerful Kinahan mob. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

25 Nov 202127min

Ireland’s mobile phone data retention systems are under the spotlight and European legal experts have warned they may have breached the law.Now, killer Graham Dwyer is eying up a favourable appeal to his conviction for the murder of Elaine O’Hara.But will the jailed architect who groomed his vulnerable victim through BDSM actually walk free.Nicola Tallant talks to barrister Ronan Lupton about the complex technicalities that could determine Dwyer’s fate. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

23 Nov 202146min