>> Thug's nephew hit with van and was dragged 30ft

Sentence wait as court hears of 'feud' animosity

- BY FIONA MAGENNIS

A 25-YEAR-OLD man "smashed" a nephew of convicted drug dealer John Gilligan with his van, dragging him for up to 30 feet before leaving him on the roadside with a fractured skull and pelvis, a court heard.

At the sentencing hearing of Ryan Craig yesterday, the Central Criminal Court was told there had been longstanding animosity between him and the victim, Dillon Gilligan, arising from an ongoing “feud” in the Ronanstown area of Dublin.

Following the incident, Craig was overheard on the phone saying: “I'm after smashing Gilligan... Seen him on the road in bits. I don't give a f**k bro.”

He was later arrested by gardaí on a UK-bound ferry at Dublin Port.

The court heard the attack was “opportunistic” rather than “pre-planned”.

Craig, of Shancastle Drive, Clondalkin, had originally been charged with the attempted murder of Mr Gilligan but pleaded guilty to the lesser offences of dangerous driving causing serious bodily harm and endangerment in July.