Family Feud : Gangland Limerick Exposed

by Anthony Galvin

For 25 years, Limerick has been in the grip of the gangs THIS IS THE STORY of how it all began. 1978 and a double-murder that Gardai could not solve - the murder no one saw. It was a busy evening in Kiely's Bar when two members of the McNamara clan attacked Anthony Kelly with knives. In the ensuing struggle he wrestled the knives from both assailants. When he walked from the bar he left two dead men, and a bitterness that prevails to this day. THIS IS THE STORY of what Vicious interfamily feuding, coupled with a thriving drug trade and petty crime, giving the city a name for mindless violence - 'stab city', best seen through the rear-view mirror of your car. THIS IS THE STORY of the detectives who have tried to contain the problem. Over three decades the weapons seized have changed - Stanley knives have been replaced on the streets by AK47s, pump action shotguns, and grenades. THIS IS THE STORY of a gang leader who became an alderman on the city council and brought the attitude of the streets to the council chamber. Michael Kelly's sights were set on the Dail before a CAB investigation derailed his ambitions. He is currently appealing an eight-year prison sentence. THIS IS THE STORY of a city which waits in fear for reprisals following the latest killing. Everyone says they don't want revenge. Everyone knows that's not true. The feuds go on. This is the story of Limerick, it's gangs, the men who have tried to stop them, and the innocent people who have endured twenty five years of fear, thuggery and intimidation.

300 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

About the author

Anthony Galvin trained as a physicist before working for a decade as a crime journalist for a daily paper in Europe's toughest city. Now he travels the world performing magic, ventriloquism and hypnotism.

He has worked as a hotel manager, radio presenter, Arctic skidoo driver, and many other jobs. He briefly held the world record for the longest public lecture (at sixty two hours) and spends every winter in the Arctic.

In his spare time he enjoys martial arts, hill-walking, and competitive public speaking.

He writes factual books under his own name, and fiction under a variety of pen names, including Jim Gallows and Dean Carson.

Reviews

[Tim · Rating 1 out of 5]

Holy mother, I wanted to love this book. I was living in Ireland at the time and one of my friends from Limerick gave me this book. Yet it is horribly written. I can usually flow through books pretty quickly but this was torture. I got through it but compared to what happens in NYC and Chicago, the gang wars just paled in comparison. Hell, read about Belfast or a better history of Limerick and you'll get more about of recent Irish history.