A senior member of the Kinahan organised crime group has been sentenced to 24 years in prison.

Sean McGovern appeared before the non-jury Special Criminal Court on Monday morning, which is a non jury court in Dublin made up of three judges.

He pleaded guilty to two charges of directing the activities of a criminal organisation.

One charge - dated between 20 October 2016 and 20 December 2016 - is in connection with the murder of Noel Kirwan.

The other charge is in relation to the surveillance of rival Hutch gang member James Gately in preparation for a serious offence between the dates of 17 October 2015 and 6 April 2017.

McGovern was given 10 years in prison for the offence relating to Gately and 14 years in prison for the offence relating to Kirwan.

The sentences will be served consecutively and backdated to include the timeline from when McGovern was taken into custody in Dubai.

The Kinahan organised crime group has been sanctioned by the US.

It emerged in Dublin in the 1990s and the US says it is one of the world's largest crime groups.

During his sentencing hearing the judge said McGovern is a "senior lieutenant and long time member of the Kinahan organised crime group".

McGovern was also described as a "senior front line operative" and a "confidante" of those in the upper echelons of the organisation.

Even though McGovern was "not at the most senior level", he was a senior trusted lieutenant for the organisation in Ireland.

The judge said McGovern had a "significant role" in the murder of Kirwan, who was not involved in crime and that he had "planned, oversaw and directed" the murder.

Kirwan was targeted because he was photographed at a funeral of a member of the Hutch organised crime group.

The bloody feud between the Hutch and Kinahan organised crime groups claimed several lives.

Kirwan was targeted because he lived in an area which was "easily accessible" to the Kinahan group and was a friend of the Hutch family, the court heard on Monday.

The judge said Kirwan was selected in a way which was "callous and cruel" and encrypted messages showed McGovern suggested he be targeted to give "confidence" in carrying out further attacks.

The encrypted text from McGovern to another member of the Kinahan group, which was read out to the court during the sentencing hearing, read: "Putting the teeth on duck to get his confidence back".

In relation to a planned attack on Gately, the judge said McGovern monitored tracking devices and planned how to target Gately.

The court took into account McGovern's guilty plea when deciding how many years McGovern should serve in prison.

'Our dad was our safety net'

Speaking outside of court, Kirwan's son Christopher Kirwan said "our dad was our safety net".

"A hard working family man who spent our whole lives working two jobs so we would never go without. He was all we had," he said.

"The values he lived by, love, sacrifice and generosity are the foundation he left behind."

Christopher Kirwan addressed McGovern directly, referencing when he fled Ireland and missed the chance to attend his own father's funeral, asking: "Was it really worth it, Sean?"

He added: "One day Sean McGovern will be released and get to spend the rest of his days with his family, while we will be out here, surviving in a world we never wanted to be a part of."

No one is 'untouchable'

Detective Superintendent Dave Gallagher of An Garda Síochána's National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau, said the sentence shows how no one is "untouchable".

"The sentencing of Sean McGovern is significant in holding to account a key person who was engaged in directing the activities of a violent criminal organisation engaged in a campaign of ruthless murder and violence which impacted so negatively on our communities and Ireland's national reputation," he said.

Gallagher said work is continuing to "disrupt and dismantle" national priority criminal organisations.

He added: "Let the conviction and sentence be a lesson to those who glorify organised crime and promote it as a way of life".

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Senior Kinahan crime member sentenced to 24 years in prison

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