A Criminal & An Irishman ─ The Inside Story of the Boston Mob - IRA Connection

A Criminal and an Irishman is the story of Pat Nee’s life as an Irish immigrant and Southie son, a Marine, a convicted IRA gun smuggler, and a former violent rival and then associate of Whitey Bulger. His narrative transports the reader into the criminal underworld, inside planning and preparation for an armored car heist, inside gang wars and revenge killings. Nee details his evolution from tough street kid to armed robber to dangerous potential killer, and discloses for the first time how he used his underworld connections and know-how as a secret, Boston-based operative for the Irish Republican Army. For years Pat smuggled weapons and money from the United States to Ireland – in the bottoms of coffins, behind false panels of vans – leading up to a transatlantic shipment of seven and a half tons of munitions aboard the fishing trawler Valhalla. No other Southie underworld figure can match Pat’s reputation for resolve and authenticity.

At fourteen Patrick Nee became associated with the gang that would later battle Whitey Bulger for rights to Southie’s criminal activities. A Marine veteran of Vietnam, Pat helped the Irish Republican Army smuggle money, guns, and munitions out of the United States. He served nearly two years in prison for the Valhalla smuggling operation, received early parole, then promptly attempted to rob an armored car in order to raise funds for the IRA. He served nine years for this later conviction, and today he works as a day laborer and spends time with his two daughters and grandchildren. He lives in South Boston.

Richard Farrell won the du Pont—Columbia Award for Excellence in Broadcast Journalism for his film High on Crack Street. He covered the war in Bosnia, has directed several award-winning films, and has written articles for the Boston Globe and numerous other publications. He lives in southern New Hampshire.

Michael Blythe, like his good friend Pat Nee, is a lifelong South Boston resident who served in the U.S. Marine Corps. He is a screenwriter and father of six.