A 29-year-old hitman for the Kinahan cartel has been jailed for twenty years for the attempted murder of a gangland target in May 2017.
Caolan Smyth, of Cuileann Court, Donore, Co Meath, shot James Gately five times while he was sitting in his car outside a petrol station in Dublin.
At the time of the attempted hit, James Gately had taken to wearing a bulletproof vest in public after being told his life was in danger.
Caolan Smyth had him under surveillance in the lead up to the shooting.
Four of the five shots he fired bounced off Mr Gately’s vest. The fifth hit him in the jaw, but he survived the attack.
Dangerous
Mr Justice Tony Hunt described him as a “ruthless and dangerous criminal” who was proficient with his weapon of choice.
It wasn’t a bad shot that saved Mr Gately, he said. “Smyth was denied by luck, not by want of skill.”
53 year old Gary McAreavey, of Gort Nua, Station Road, Castlebellingham, Co Louth, was jailed for three years for helping to destroy Smyth’s getaway car.
The court heard he had no connection to any criminal organisation.
