Man jailed over role in bungled Co Offaly shooting plot

A member of a gang involved in a bungled shooting plot in Co Offaly has been sentenced to four years in prison.

Sergio Machado Filho (37) pleaded guilty at an earlier sitting of Tullamore Circuit Criminal Court to charges of possessing a weapon and ammunition at River Street, Clara, on May 27th, 2020.

Filho, a Brazilian national with an address in Temple Bar, Dublin, was one of four gang members found with a 9mm sub-machine gun and four shotgun cartridges when stopped by gardaí. The court heard the accused was alone in one of two vehicles that were travelling in convoy.

Niall Storan BL, for Filho, said his client was remorseful for his actions and had been a model prisoner since being detained.

Judge Keenan Johnson sentenced Filho to seven years but suspended the final three for a period of 10 years. Three other members of the gang were previously sentenced to prison terms of between three and five years.

The court previously heard evidence that the men were going to engage in an ongoing feud between two families in the Tullamore area. The four got lost twice on their way to their target destination. Gardaí claimed the gang was equipped with a sub-machine gun that would have jammed after one shot.