Secret peace talks with Limerick gangs resume

SO-called peace talks involving Limerick’s main feud gangs resumed in secret on Thursday night at an office run by the agency brought in to regenerate crime-ridden council estates in the city.

Some of the city’s most dangerous criminals met with a person linked to the regeneration agency, who has been trying to broker talks between the McCarthy-Dundon and the Keane-Collopy gangs.

Last month a man linked to the regeneration process booked a suite at the four-star city centre Clarion Hotel after he had set up a meeting between members of the Collopy and Dundon families.

However, it was called off at the last minute.

At the time agency chief Brendan Kenny, denied that his organisation was involved in the Clarion Hotel meeting.

He did concede, however, they were talking to people behind the scenes.

Thursday night’s peace meeting was held in a regeneration agency office in the city. Sources say a person linked to the agency met with members of the Dundon gang.

The location of the meeting would have been off limits for the Keane-Collopy gang, who operate out of St Mary’s Park.

It is believed the regeneration agency link man now plans to meet the Collopy faction before finalising a face-to-face meeting between both sides.

Limerick Gardaí are furious a person linked to the agency has set himself up as a self-appointed truce maker and were last night gathering further information about Thursday night’s meeting.

“We have had no feud shooting for nearly six months,” one garda source said. “We are finding out about these meetings indirectly.”

The regeneration agency has said crime families will have to mend their ways if they are to get housing when Southill, Moyross, St Mary’s Park and Ballinacurra Weston are rebuilt.

To get housing they will need garda clearance.

This has heightened garda frustration that they are not being kept informed of what is going on between feud gang members and a figure linked to the regeneration agency.