Episode 1225: Ruth Lawrence double murder trial on hold as court hears witness sick

A journalist shot dead on the street. A criminal lawyer assassinated on the doorstep of his Amsterdam home and the brother of a state witness gunned down as a reminder of the penalty for breaking the underworld's sacred code of 'Omerta'.Now, Narco terrorism in the Netherlands has reached even greater heights with its PrIme Minister under 24-hour protection and the suspect behind these shocking murders found to have been planning a dramatic escape from the country’s highest security prison.So what next for a nation under siege and is criminal Ridouan Taghi Europe’s very own Pablo Escobar? Nicola Tallant talks to journalist Saskia Belleman of De Telegraaf about the street dealer turned mob boss behind a remarkable series of events that have shook the very foundations of Dutch society.She reveals the hitmen hired to kill famous journalist Peter R De Vries, the secret jailhouse meetings between Taghi and a lawyer now under investigation and about a country questioning it’s ability to fight the monster of organised crime. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

23 Okt 202127min

He is due to face kidnap charges later this year in the UK and has been a central and violent figure in the Drogheda feud - but it seems gang boss Cornelius Price is unlikely to ever face up to his crimes.Price, whose gang are suspected of a number of murders including that of William Maughan and his pregnant girlfriend Anna Varslavane, is currently in critical condition in hospital after being struck down by a terminal illness.Months short of his 40th birthday, Price has left a bloody mark on Ireland’s underworld and today I’m talking to Irish Independent journalist Ken Foy about the terrifying past of one of the most-notorious gangland figures in modern criminal history.We discuss the Co Meath compound where Price lived surrounded by his underlings, his role in the escalating violence in Drogheda which culminated in the brutal murder of teenager Keane Mulready Woods and the day he celebrated the death of rival mobster Robbie Lawlor by toasting his demise. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

21 Okt 202130min

He is a gangland heavyweight serving time for drugs and weapon offences and was once named in court as the triggerman in the murder of mob boss Martin 'Marlo' Hyland.But inmate Johnny Mangan is on the run after escaping from the low security Loughan House prison where he had been moved after a parole board deemed him low risk.In a huge embarrassment for the Irish Prison Service, it has emerged that Mangan was using a mobile phone in his cell to make threats to a Dublin family in the run-up to his escape, claiming he was owed money for drugs.Nicola Tallant chats with journalist Eamon Dillon about the extraordinary series of events that has turned a focus on gangland criminals being housed in open jails where they can come and go as they please and left the shocking question of where is Johnny Mangan? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

20 Okt 202129min

It’s been 20 years since Sunday World journalist Martin O’Hagan was murdered on a Lurgan pavement as he walked home from a pub with his wife Marie.Known affectionately as Marty by his colleagues in the Belfast newsroom and an adored dad of three, he was just 51 when he became the only journalist to die as a result of The Troubles. His killing remains unsolved, but is believed to have been carried out by a team of LVF assassins acting on the dying wish of their twisted leader Billy Wright.But what was it like to lose a colleague and friend and how hard was it to continue working in a newsroom with an empty desk.Nicola Tallant talks to Sunday World reporter Richard Sullivan about the terrible night when a journalist became front page news, the reality of working in a warzone and the fading hopes of justice for Marty. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

16 Okt 202131min

Convicted drug dealer Graham ‘The Wig’ Whelan is facing jail after pleading guilty to a number of offences relating to his arrest at a luxury Dublin hotel, when he was caught with cash in his pocket and an expensive watch on his arm by undercover officers investigating drug crime.While the offences may seem small for criminal as significant Whelan, they have placed the spotlight on his fall from the lofty heights as a senior member of one of Ireland’s most-ruthless crime gangs.Nicola Tallant talks with Sunday World Deputy Editor Niall Donald about the life and crimes of Graham 'The Wig' Whelan. They discuss the infamous Holiday Inn Hotel drug bust that started a war, the tough-man image that helped him rise through the ranks of gangland and the lonely future he faces after multiple tragedies visited his life. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

15 Okt 202127min

They are the first people in Ireland to be convicted of human trafficking for a prostitution ring and now Alicia Edosa and Edith Enoghaghase are finding out for themselves what it feels like to be trapped after receiving jail terms of over five years.But an extraordinary story lies behind the headlines of a Midlands sex ring and the madams who ran it, a story that stretches all the way back to slave markets in Nigeria and the practice of voodoo.Nicola Tallant chats to journalist Eamon Dillon about the human sex slaves working in Irish prostitution and the profits made from putting them to work. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

14 Okt 202139min

A FORMER FBI agent working with the family of missing Annie McCarrick has said that a Spanish serial killer arrived in Dublin as a stowaway on a boat 48 hours before the American student vanished - but slipped the net once gardai were called.Kenneth Strange, who is working as a liaison for Nancy McCarrick, Annie’s mum, has just visited Ireland to retrace the last known movements of Antonio Angles, who is believed to have stowed away on the 'City of Plymouth' boat from Lisbon.Angles is to be the subject of a new Spanish documentary and investigators have confirmed that he was on the boat when it docked in Dublin at around 2.45am on March 23, 1993. five days after setting out on its journey. When Gardai were called by the ship’s captain to remove the unwelcome passenger he disappeared never to be seen again.Nicola Tallant chats with former FBI agent Kenneth Strange about the developments in the case and the pain the McCarrick family have endured over the years. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

9 Okt 202150min

It’s the 37-year murder mystery that has haunted Ireland and remains the biggest policing scandal in modern history.A dead baby washes up on a Kerry beach with 28 stab wounds and a fractured spine, a Garda murder squad is dispatched to find answers but a local woman is hounded for the brutal slaying while the real killer walks free.Now, a DNA sample taken from the exhumed remains of ‘Baby John’ has offered fresh hopes that science could finally solve the cold case that has baffled the nation.Nicola Tallant talks with Irish Independent journalist Ralph Riegel about the extraordinary story of Baby John. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

7 Okt 202126min