Episode 886: The controversy over the court reference given to Hurler Kyle Hayes’ thug brothers

Sandra visits home every Sunday evening to see her family, however, they know little about her day-to-day existence in Killala.  They are shocked when she reveals her pregnancy in the late 90s but are also completely supportive.Sandra makes the difficult decision to give her baby daughter up for adoption.  The Collins family are deeply saddened by the move but understand it. A short time later, they experience a huge tragedy when their brother James is killed in a horrific workplace accident.  It takes a toll on all of them, and Sandra must deal with her grief without them close by.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s coming on two decades since a garda crackdown on Limerick promised to break the gangs that had turned the city into a warzone. So, where are the players now and why are so many still involved in drug dealing and organised criminality? Nicola speaks with Eamon Dillon. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode was originally published by our sister podcast, The BelTel on May 29, 2026. Jeffrey Donaldson’s wife planted a listening device in his car after becoming suspicious he was having affair with a constituent, a court in Newry has been told.  The 63-year-old former MP in on trial in relation to 18 alleged historical sex offence charges, dating from 1985 to 2008 – including a charge of rape. He denies all of the charges against him.   His wife Eleanor Donaldson, of Dublinhill Road, Dromore in Co Down, is charged with aiding and abetting. She denies the charges.  She will not be in court and is facing a trial of the facts as she has been ruled medically unfit to stand trial.   Allison Morris was in court. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Blood bonds between organised crime groups have a long history in the underworld and in the efforts by law enforcement to get to the root of what holds outfits together. Now a familial bond between the Gucci Gang and the Kinahan Organisation have featured in Criminal Assets Bureau affidavits which give an insight into a troubled period of restructure in both groups in the aftermath of a garda crackdown. Nicola speaks to Eamon Dillon. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Garda Inspector Tom Quinn has told of the effects of a dog attack on his career, reputation and promotional ability in an extraordinary court case involving criminal Edward 'Blondie' Stokes and an altered video about an incident at his property. In a case that took eight years to come to court, Stokes pleaded guilty to a range of charges after evidence proved he set his dog on the Garda. Nicola speaks with Crime World's Eamon Dillon about Stokes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.