Gardaí believe the Kinahan gang will try again to murder Patsy Hutch after a suspected attempt on his life was foiled on Saturday.
Four people remained in Garda custody on Tuesday night in connection with the thwarted attempt on Mr Hutch’s life.
However, detectives believe other gunmen will be paid to try and murder him in the future because he has now become the chief target in Dublin of the Kinahan gang.
The suspects being questioned can be held for up to seven days without charge under legislation aimed at disrupting gangland activity.
Two of them have previously been linked to the now dormant Crumlin-Drimnagh feud, which ran for a decade before coming to an end about seven years ago. Another of the men being held is a dissident republican while the fourth suspect is an Irishman who previously served in the British army.
Gardaí believe they were to be paid a large fee if they succeeded in shooting Mr Hutch dead. The murder of his son, Gary Hutch, in Spain 2½ years ago effectively began what has become known as the Kinahan-Hutch feud.
Fourteen deaths
To date, 14 men had been shot dead in that so-called feud, with all but two of the killings perpetrated by the Kinahan cartel on the Hutch grouping and their associates.
Senior gardaí are concerned that despite a major policing operation focussed around Mr Hutch’s family home in Dublin’s north inner city, the Kinahan gang will persist with its efforts to kill him.
His son Gary had tried to shoot dead one of the Kinahans in Spain in 2015. However, he botched that shooting and was eventually murdered in revenge in September of that year.
Gerry Hutch, the veteran criminal known as 'The Monk', is regarded as the Kinahan gang's main target. He is a brother of Patsy Hutch.
However, Gerry Hutch has left Ireland and the Kinahan gang has been unable to locate him. In his absence, Patsy Hutch has become the target of the Dublin-based section of the Kinahan cartel.
On Saturday at about 8am three men were arrested during a planned Garda operation on Gardiner Street in Dublin’s north inner city, less than 1km away from Patsy Hutch’s home. A fourth suspect was detained in a follow-up operation.
Two submachine guns, one revolver, two semi-automatic pistols, a silencer and ammunition were also seized as part of the operation, and nine properties were searched.
