Gun salesman gets 11 years in Jail

A Limerick man has been jailed for 11 years in London after he was convicted of being the “middle-man” who brought customers to a couple who were running a “Gun Supermarket”.

Laurence McCarthy who is known locally as Larry and originally from the Old Cork Road area of the city, is starting his sentence tonight after he was found guilty of conspiracy to possess a firearm with intent to endanger life and conspiracy to possess a prohibited weapon.

Police kept a 48 hour watch over the armoury in Hackney last July and in that time they saw McCarthy bring a prospective buyer, Mark van Dinh into the flat where he wanted to but a machine gun for the Chinese Triads.

At this point police moved in nabbing McCarthy, Van Dinh and the two occupants of the apartment, Mark Downs and Patricia Cremin. The buyer, Van Dinh was found in the flat with £3,000 on his person. When McCarthy was arrested he said he only visited the apartment to buy counterfeit money.

The judge replied to this statement by proclaiming,

“Your role was far greater than mere chance. You were there to observe and supervise the delivery of the machine gun. You were entirely responsible for introducing Van Dinh to Downs.”

The barrister explained,

"Downs and Cremin were selling ammunition from the flat. McCarthy was the middle man on this occasion, the man who introduced his customer who had come to buy the submachine pistol"

Mark Downs was jailed for 11 years and Patricia Cremin was jailed for 3 years. Mark Van Dinh was jailed for 9 years.