Four men jailed over ‘callous’ conspiracy to murder gangland criminal

Four men involved in a conspiracy to murder gangland criminal Wayne Whelan have been jailed for a total of 33 years at the Central Criminal Court.

Whelan survived their murder attempt but was subsequently shot dead in another attack in November 2019.

Mr Justice Michael White on Thursday said he was “shocked by the callous indifference” shown by the men involved in the plot.

He said Wayne Ryan, who pleaded guilty to attempted murder, had taken part in a “planned, cold blooded attack in broad daylight” outside Whelan’s home.

Ryan (41), with an address at Lanna Aoibhann, St Michael’s Road, Longford, pleaded guilty to the attempted murder of Whelan at Griffeen Glen Park, Lucan, on September 4th, 2019. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

Three other men pleaded guilty to conspiracy to murder the father-of-three at that location between May 15th and November 15th, 2019. They are Cailean Crawford (25), of Clifden Terrace, Ballyfermot; Darren Henderson (31), of Cleggan Avenue, Ballyfermot; and Charles McClean (32) of St Mark’s Drive, Clondalkin.

Mr Justice White sentenced McClean to eight years and gave Henderson and Crawford to seven years terms with the final two years suspended.

Lay in wait

He said Ryan was one of two masked men in a van that lay in wait for Whelan at the scene. He said Ryan had previous convictions including for firearms offences and the only mitigating factor was his guilty plea. The judge backdated Ryan’s sentence to October 24th, 2019, when he first went into custody.

McClean, the judge said, had played a “substantial role” in the conspiracy to murder Whelan. He noted that McClean previously had a business relationship with the victim and said his behaviour was particularly disappointing given his sporting background. His eight-year sentence was backdated to September 29th last, when he went into custody.

Henderson and Crawford, the judge said, provided “significant logistical support” but were not close to the scene of the actual attempted murder. Henderson has a history of regular employment despite a debilitating medical condition. Crawford, the judge said, was previously of good character.