downfall 'Fatso' Mitchell's ten-year-sentence is the final nail in the coffin of the Gilligan Gang

The jailing of Peter Fatso Mitchell on drugs charges in the UK is the latest blow to the former members of the gang run by John Gilligan.

Several members of the gang are either dead or in jail and former gang leader John Gilligan is currently awaiting trial in Spain.

Brian ‘the Tosser’ Meehan is the only member of the gang serving life for the murder of crime journalist Veronica Guerin in 1996.

Meehan has been behind bars for 23 years and last year he was moved to Shelton Abbey open prison in Wicklow. He was pictured playing golf at the prison last year and is hoping to eventually be let out on parole.

Patrick ‘Dutchy’ Holland, who was named in court as the gunman who shot Veronica, died in prison in England in 2009. While he was never convicted of Veronica’s murder he was sentenced to 20 years for his involvement in Gilligan’s cannabis empire.

That sentence was later reduced to 12 years on appeal. A year after being released from prison he was arrested in the UK over conspiracy to kidnap and died in prison two years later while serving an eight-year sentence for the offence.

John ‘the Coach’ Traynor, who is suspected of supplying the Gilligan gang with Veronica’s whereabouts on the day of her murder, died in the UK last year.

He had been receiving palliative care for cancer in Kent when he died at the age of 73. He had been living in exile after fleeing Ireland following Veronica’s murder.

Charlie Bowden, who cleaned and loaded the gun used to kill Veronica, turned State’s witness and gave evidence against the gang. He became the first person in Ireland to be placed in the Witness Protection Programme and was subsequently relocated abroad to a secret location.

Paul ‘Hippo’ Ward was initially convicted of involvement in the murder of Veronica but that conviction was subsequently quashed.

He hit the headlines five years ago after he gave evidence at an inquest into the death of his nephew who died after consuming a cocktail of drink and drugs while the pair were partying at a hotel room on the Naas Road in Dublin near the scene of Veronica’s murder.

John Gilligan is currently awaiting trial in Spain on drugs and firearms charges. He was never convicted over the murder of Veronica but did serve 17 years for his cannabis operation

He survived a gangland shooting in Dublin after his release from prison and relocated abroad. He remained involved in crime after his release from prison and Spanish cops arrested him in 2020 on drugs and firearms charges.

His trial is set to get underway this year and the 69-year-old potentially faces eight years behind bars if convicted.