Badfellas

[9781844882717]

"Badfellas" is the story of how Ireland lost its innocence and became a hotbed of gangsterism, murder and mayhem. Until the explosion of paramilitary violence in the 1970s, Ireland was a criminal backwater. However, petty criminals with dreams of the big time were quick to emulate the ruthless actions of the subversives. Organized crime took hold in Ireland and soon stories of armed robberies, kidnappings and murder dominated the news. After the introduction of heroin to Ireland by Dublin's Dunne family in the late 1970s, there was no going back. Since then the drug trade has become the most lucrative criminal activity in the state and Irish gangs are among the most sophisticated and deadly in the world. "Badfellas" is the definitive account of the growth of Irish organized crime by Ireland's outstanding crime journalist, Paul Williams.