Bernard O'Mahoney (born 15 March 1960,
Dunstable
Dunstable ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, east of the Chiltern Hills, north of London. There are several steep chalk escarpments, most noticeable when approaching Dunstable from the ...
,
Bedfordshire
Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council wa ...
, England) is an English author, security detail, and former soldier. After taking control of security at a nightclub he became associated with Tony Tucker, a drug dealer who was shot along with two others in what is known as the
Rettendon murders
The Rettendon murders (also known as the Range Rover murders or Essex murders) occurred on 6 December 1995 in the village of Rettendon in Essex, England, when three drug dealers were shot dead in a Range Rover on a small farm track. The murders w ...
.
This event captured the imagination of the media and forced O'Mahoney to retire from the security industry. He began writing books about his experiences. Several of these books have since become best sellers, two of the books have been made into a film. The books in question are The Essex Boys and Bonded By Blood which is based upon true events of the
Rettendon murders
The Rettendon murders (also known as the Range Rover murders or Essex murders) occurred on 6 December 1995 in the village of Rettendon in Essex, England, when three drug dealers were shot dead in a Range Rover on a small farm track. The murders w ...
.
O'Mahoney is also known for his affair with
Michelle Taylor, a woman who was accused of (and who he now believes committed) the
murder of Alison Shaughnessy
On 3 June 1991, 21 year old Alison Shaughnessy ( Blackmore; born 7 November 1969) was stabbed to death in the stairwell of her flat near Clapham Junction station. Shaughnessy was newly married, but her husband was having an affair with a 20-yea ...
. His 2001 book ''The Dream Solution'' focused on the case.
Personal life
Of Irish descent, Patrick Bernard O'Mahoney was born in
Dunstable
Dunstable ( ) is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in Bedfordshire, England, east of the Chiltern Hills, north of London. There are several steep chalk escarpments, most noticeable when approaching Dunstable from the ...
and grew up near
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunian ...
. He has also lived in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
,
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and North ...
,
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...
,
Basildon
Basildon ( ) is the largest town in the borough of Basildon, within the county of Essex, England. It has a population of 107,123. In 1931 the parish had a population of 1159.
It lies east of Central London, south of the city of Chelmsford and ...
,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, as well as being based in
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
.
He has six children. He has been married to Roshea Tierney since September 2009. He was the subject matter of Episode 7 of Series 2 of the
Sky
The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space.
In the field of astronomy, ...
television programme ''
Danny Dyer's Deadliest Men
''Danny Dyer's Deadliest Men'' (''Danny Dyer's Deadliest Men 2: Living Dangerously'' in Series 2) is a documentary series broadcast on Bravo between 20 October 2008 and 28 September 2009. It followed Danny Dyer as he embarked on meeting men he ...
''.
Books
''So this is Ecstasy?''
Published in April 1997, it tells the story of dealing of
ecstasy and other hard drugs in the
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...
area during the early to mid-1990s, which gained a high profile in November 1995 with the death of
Latchingdon teenager
Leah Betts
Leah Sarah Betts (1 November 1977 – 16 November 1995) was a young woman from Latchingdon, Essex, United Kingdom, who died at age 18 after taking an MDMA, ecstasy (MDMA) tablet, and then drinking approximately of water in a 90 minute period. ...
, and the murder of three men allegedly involved with local drug dealing the following month.
''Essex Boys''
Published in April 2000, it is a more in-depth story of the Essex Boys, who featured in part of "Wannabe in My Gang" four years later.
''Soldier of the Queen''
Published in February 2001, this is O'Mahoney's account of his time with the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
as a soldier in the early 1980s.
''The Dream Solution: The Murder of Alison Shaughnessy - and the Fight to Name Her Killer''
Published in 2001 with Mick McGovern, this book focused on the high-profile
murder of Alison Shaughnessy
On 3 June 1991, 21 year old Alison Shaughnessy ( Blackmore; born 7 November 1969) was stabbed to death in the stairwell of her flat near Clapham Junction station. Shaughnessy was newly married, but her husband was having an affair with a 20-yea ...
in 1991.
O'Mahoney had originally been one of those who campaigned for the release of the Taylor sisters who were convicted of murdering Shaughnessy, before having an affair with one of them.
He became suspicious of her obsessive behaviour and discovered a letter that indicated she was guilty of the murder.
He confronted her and she broke down, confessing to her guilt.
From then on O'Mahoney has campaigned to have the Taylors re-convicted.
''Wannabe in My Gang''
Published in March 2004, it tells of the now-deceased
Kray Twins
Ronald Kray (24 October 193317 March 1995) and Reginald Kray (24 October 19331 October 2000) were identical twin brothers, gangsters and convicted criminals. They were the foremost perpetrators of organised crime in the East End of London, Engl ...
, Ronnie and Reggie, who dominated the gangland scene of London for a number of years until they were arrested for murder in 1968, as well as O'Mahoney's correspondence with them during their imprisonment.
It also tells of the notorious three "Essex Boys" drug dealers who terrorised
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...
with drug dealing and violence during the early to mid-1990s before they were found shot dead in a
Range Rover
Range may refer to:
Geography
* Range (geographic), a chain of hills or mountains; a somewhat linear, complex mountainous or hilly area (cordillera, sierra)
** Mountain range, a group of mountains bordered by lowlands
* Range, a term used to i ...
in December 1995. The book also discusses British crime-figure
Dave Courtney
David John Courtney (born 17 February 1959) is an English self-proclaimed former gangster who has become both an author and celebrity.
Author Bernard O'Mahoney and Frankie Fraser (the former member of the Richardson gang) have accused Courtn ...
, and the Kray twins and gives O'Mahoney's opinions on books published by criminals.
''Hateland''
Published in May 2005, ''Hateland'' tells of O'Mahoney's correspondence with nailbomber
David Copeland
The 1999 London nail bombings were a series of bomb explosions in London, England. Over three successive weekends between 17 and 30 April 1999, homemade nail bombs were detonated respectively in Brixton in South London; at Brick Lane, Spitalfiel ...
while he was on remand for a string on nail bomb attacks which occurred in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
in April 1999, killing three people (including a pregnant woman) and injuring many more. It also tells of O'Mahoney's violent childhood and youth, including the abuse he suffered at the hands of his alcoholic father and Bernard's involvement with football hooliganism and the Nazi/far-right movement and subsequently his change of views and how he helped infiltrate the British
Ku Klux Klan
The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to the KKK or the Klan, is an American white supremacist, right-wing terrorist, and hate group whose primary targets are African Americans, Jews, Latinos, Asian Americans, Native Americans, and ...
with a
News of the World
The ''News of the World'' was a weekly national Tabloid journalism#Red tops, red top Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published every Sunday in the United Kingdom from 1843 to 2011. It was at one time the world's highest-selling En ...
reporter.
''Bonded by Blood''
Published in October 2006, it tells of the British drugs scene as a whole, relating to the earlier books "Wannabe in My Gang" and "Essex Boys" which told of the drugs scene in
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...
.
''Wild Thing''
Published in August 2007, it is the biography of "hard man" Lew Yates.
''Essex Boys – The New Generation''
Published on 1 May 2008, ''Essex Boys – The New Generation'' tells of the continuing drugs scene in
Essex
Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...
in the decade that followed the murder of the original three "Essex Boys" in December 1995.
Flowers in God's Garden
Published on 1 April 2012, nearly a decade after O'Mahoney began work on it, ''Flowers in God's Garden'' tells of O'Mahoney's correspondence with a number of high-profile serial killers and child killers, including "Yorkshire Ripper"
Peter Sutcliffe
Peter William Sutcliffe (2 June 1946 – 13 November 2020) was an English serial killer who was dubbed the Yorkshire Ripper (an allusion to Jack the Ripper) by the press. Sutcliffe was convicted of murdering 13 women and attempting t ...
,
Roy Whiting
Sarah Evelyn Isobel Payne (13 October 1991 – c. 1 July 2000), was the victim of a high-profile abduction and murder in West Sussex, England in July 2000.
Her disappearance and the subsequent investigation into her murder became a prominent c ...
(who murdered seven-year-old
Sarah Payne in
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in South East England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the shire districts of Adur, Arun, Chichester, Horsham, and Mid Sussex, and the boroughs of Crawley and Worthing. Covering an ar ...
in 2000) and
Ian Huntley
The Soham murders were a double child murder committed in Soham, Cambridgeshire, England on 4 August 2002. The victims were two 10-year-old girls, Holly Marie Wells and Jessica Aimee Chapman, who were lured into the home of a local resident and ...
(the school caretaker who
murdered two 10-year-old girls in
Soham
Soham ( ) is a town and civil parish in the district of East Cambridgeshire, in Cambridgeshire, England, just off the A142 between Ely and Newmarket. Its population was 10,860 at the 2011 census.
History Archaeology
The region between Dev ...
,
Cambridgeshire
Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a Counties of England, county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and North ...
, in 2002).
It also tells of how he gained a written confession from Richard Blenkey for the murder of seven-year-old Paul Pearson at
Marske,
Cleveland
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
, in 1991, and how he employed the same tactic when writing to
Shaun Armstrong after he was charged with the murder of
Hartlepool
Hartlepool () is a seaside and port town in County Durham, England. It is the largest settlement and administrative centre of the Borough of Hartlepool. With an estimated population of 90,123, it is the second-largest settlement in County ...
toddler
Rosie Palmer three years later. In both instances, the letters which O'Mahoney received were shown to the jury at the trial, and both men admitted the murders.
In 2001, Armstrong lodged a claim for damages against O'Mahoney for "breach of confidence", as O'Mahoney had posed as a woman when writing to Armstrong, who had urged him not to tell anyone of his admission to the murder of Rosie Palmer, but he later withdrew his challenge for damages.
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Omahoney, Bernard
1960 births
Living people
People from Dunstable
English crime writers
English people of Irish descent