Gardai were last night quizzing an ally of gangster Mr Flashy – after armed gardai moved against his gang.
Sources have confirmed that yesterday’s operation in Finglas – in which officers seized a pistol and silencer – was aimed at disrupting Flashy’s drugs gang and stopping further bloodshed in its war with a rival outfit.
Rival James Whelan (29) has already been murdered in that war and gardai have vowed to take down both gangs – to make sure nobody else dies.
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Within hours of yesterday’s raids in Finglas that saw the alleged Flashy henchman and three other people arrested, the same gang mounted a brazen daylight arson attack in the area – and badly damaged a house.
Sources say gardai believe that attack was a message from Flashy to his rivals – as well as officers investigating him. And they said gardai in Finglas are braced for fresh violence between the Flashy drugs and its rivals – as tensions between them are now at boiling point.
“It’s hard to believe there won’t be more attacks,” a source said last night.
The warning came as gardai targeted the Flashy gang as part of an investigation into a feud-related shooting last January – and seized a weapon.
Gardai first searched a house in the area and arrested the suspect in his 20s over the shooting early yesterday.
But they then searched another house where they found the handgun and pistol – and arrested a man in his 30s and two women in their 20s.
All four were being questioned at Finglas and Blanchardstown Garda stations and can be detained for up to three days.
A few hours later an unoccupied house in the Ratoath Drive area of Finglas was burned out in an arson attack - which gardai believe was carried out by Flashy’s mob.
That attack came just days after three other properties were targeted by the two gangs involved in the deadly feud.
Criminals targeted the home of murder victim James Whelan’s innocent mother Sonya in Finglas early on Saturday - in an attack that almost cost her her life.
She was only saved from death because a smoke alarm alerted her partner and he managed to get her out of the house.
Then a few hours later associates of Whelan – who was killed by the Flashy mob in April – targeted another innocent woman’s home in the area.
The second woman was uninjured in that attack,
Another property was targeted early on Sunday and gardai are now braced for further attacks.
Nobody in the houses is connected to the feud or involved with crime.
They believe pals of Whelan – murdered after he had a falling out with Flashy- are intent on avenging his death.
But Flashy is himself a dangerous criminal and gardai believe it is more likely his associates will target Whelan’s pals first.
Garda Commissioner earlier this week vowed to take on both gangs – and urged the people of Finglas to help his officers in the fight.
And Mr Harris yesterday told the Policing Authority that he would not tolerate open drug dealing in any community.
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