Dundon trained by ex-boxing champ in jail
Related Articles
WITH little to do behind bars except count down the days to yesterday's release, Wayne Dundon returns to Limerick a much more physically imposing man.
During his incarceration in Wheatfield Prison, Dundon hit the weights hard and was trained by convicted drug dealer and former Irish boxing champion, John Kinsella.
The eldest son of Kenneth Dundon and Anne McCarthy, Wayne Dundon was considered to be so violent by British authorities he was served with a deportation order from the British Home Office following a litany of crimes. He returned to his home city of Limerick at the turn of the millennium.
Dundon and his gang soon embarked on a campaign of violence.
After setting up base in Hyde Road, Weston, he was soon convicted for threatening to smash a prison officer's face in the public toilets of a shopping centre. Dundon has also served time for handling stolen property, dangerous driving offences and for a charge of assault causing harm.
The Dundons teamed up with their cousins, the McCarthys, and soon established themselves as the country's most dangerous criminal gang as they aligned themselves to the Ryan side in their notorious Limerick feud with the Keanes and Collopys.
In a lethal double-cross, the McCarthy-Dundons tried to gain control of the drugs trade in the mid-west with the murder of rival gang boss Kieran Keane in 2003.
In a bid to end the spiralling violence, Wayne Dundon and his associates from the Ryans met with the Collopys in a Limerick hotel in the spring of 2004.
Overseen by former defence minister Willie O'Dea, the McCarthy-Dundons and Collopys provisionally agreed to stop attacks on each other. However, the violence continued unabated.
On December 19, 2004, Dundon dropped off his sister Annabel (14) at Brannigan's bar in the city.
Respected publican Steve Collins ran the busy pub and his nephew, Ryan Lee, refused Annabel admittance while Dundon unsuccessfully remonstrated.
But he cocked his fingers in the shape of a gun, pushed it against Mr Lee's face and warned: "F**k you, you're dead."
Less than 30 minutes later, a gunman wearing a motorcycle helmet walked into the pub and shot Mr Lee twice.
Dundon was arrested and assaulted two detectives in the interview room, leaving one with a broken jaw.
Following the shooting, the pub was set alight in an arson attack, causing extensive damage.
Dundon was subsequently convicted of threatening to kill Mr Lee but, in February 2008, his 10-year sentence was reduced to seven years by the Court of Criminal Appeal.
- Barry Duggan
Irish Independent
