THE ‘RATT’ BACK | 

Gardaí on high alert as mob boss Brian Rattigan spotted arriving home at Dublin airport

The convicted killer and drug dealer has spent most of his time in Spain since being released from Portlaoise Prison in 2021

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Gardaí in the capital are on high alert after mob boss Brian Rattigan arrived back in Dublin this week.

The convicted killer and drug dealer has spent most of his time in Spain since being released from Portlaoise Prison in 2021 where he was imprisoned for nearly two decades.

He has also previously resided near Alicante and is suspected of continuing to run a major criminal operation in Ireland while living abroad.

Sources have now told the Irish Independent that Rattigan flew into Dublin from Spain on Monday where he was met by Dublin detectives.

It is understood that the 43-year-old was briefly spoken to by gardaí and he told them he was “back for business” before leaving the airport.

The Drimnagh man was also sporting a black eye and is believed to have been assaulted in Spain recently. Despite his return he has not been sighted in his home town since, where he spent time immediately after being released from custody in 2021.

“His return is a cause for concern but the exact reason why he would come back at this time isn’t immediately clear,” a source said.

“He has not been spotted in public since his return earlier this week. Local police forces in Spain have been liaising with gardaí and have also been keeping passing attention on him due to his links to organised and serious crime.”

Brian Rattigan has also been under investigation in relation to the murder of Dublin criminal Gary Carey last year.

The 41-year-old victim was shot several times in the car park of the Hilton Hotel near the South Circular Road in Kilmainham. He died several weeks later, with his killing upgraded to a murder investigation. As Carey was being treated by paramedics, he named Rattigan as the person responsible for the shooting, and gardaí have actively investigated his role in the hit.

However, associates of Ballyfermot criminal Derek ‘Dee Dee’ O’Driscoll remain the chief suspects for organising the murder.

Last month detectives investigating the fatal shooting made a number of arrests which included the suspected hitman. In recent months several high-value drug seizures linked to Rattigan’s gang have also been made. An anti-gangland operation targeting organised crime, during which a firearm was recovered in Dublin, was also connected to the Rattigan mob. The details of the seizure cannot be outlined as there are currently charges before the courts.

Prior to being released in August 2021, Brian Rattigan had been in custody since 2003 after being charged with the murder of Declan Gavin two years earlier, a killing which sparked the Crumlin/Drimnagh feud that claimed 16 lives. While awaiting trial, he was sentenced for four years’ imprisonment for shooting at a patrol car while being pursued by gardaí.

Rattigan was later convicted of Gavin’s murder and while serving that sentence, he was also found guilty of running a drugs operation from Portlaoise Prison. Gardaí had seized €1m worth of heroin and linked the drugs to Rattigan. He was later jailed for 17 years.

His murder conviction was overturned in 2017 and two years later he was sentenced to nine years’ imprisonment for manslaughter.