Share
In The News
A sick man: DJ Carey and his cancer con
•
Last November former Kilkenny hurler DJ Carey was sentenced to five and a half years in prison for fraud.
In July, the disgraced sportsman pleaded guilty to ten counts of deception involving thirteen individuals.
It was a stunning fall from grace for the Kilkenny man, who was once the most celebrated hurler in the country.
For years Carey spun a web of lies, convincing friends, acquaintances, and even strangers that he was battling terminal cancer and needed large sums of money for life-saving treatment.
At times, his stories were meticulously crafted, rich in detail. Sometimes they were just spur of the moment pleas for cash.
In today's episode journalist and author of The Dodger, Eimear Ní Bhraonáin maps out Carey’s decade long deception and explains how he got away with his crimes for so long.
The Dodger: DJ Carey and the Great Betrayal published by Merrion Press is out now.
This episode was first published in November 2025.
As we head into the New Year, The Irish Times wants to hear listener feedback on our two news podcasts; In The News and our more recently released sister podcast Early Edition.
This survey is open to anyone who has listened to either In The News or Early Edition- whether you listen regularly, occasionally, or have listened in the past.
This survey should take around 3-5 minutes to complete. All responses are anonymous.
More episodes
View all episodes
Keir Starmer is clinging on to power but for how long?
19:35|British prime minister Keir Starmer is clinging to power after scores of Labour MPs – and several ministers – called on him to resign or at least plot a clear path for a change in leadership.The immediate prompt is the collapse of the Labour vote during the local elections which saw more than 1,500 councillors lose their seats.Add the party’s losses at the devolved elections in Scotland and Wales and the turnaround in Labour’s fortunes since its landslide general election win couldn’t be more stark.But do the roots of dissatisfaction with the solid, steady and uncharismatic Starmer, and the party, go much deeper than a few bad days at the polls?And while he says he is going nowhere and that he will stay and fight Reform UK for “the soul of Britain”, is his position really tenable? Is there a contender in the wings, waiting for the chance to oust him from Number 10, someone who would be more popular with Labour voters?Irish Times London correspondent Mark Paul reflects on a dramatic day in Westminster.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon.How a Carlow garden centre left buyers millions out of pocket
22:17|When Irish Times consumer affairs correspondent Conor Pope got an email last June about the non-delivery of garden furniture, he couldn’t have known that it would be the start of a deluge of similar complaints from hundreds of frustrated customers.All had ordered from Rathwood, a family business, operating for more than 30 years that had grown into one of the biggest outdoor living retailers in the State. And all had received excuses about delays, supplier issues and new investors.It has now been estimated that customers are owed in excess of €2 million and that the company, now in examinership, is mired in debt.So how did this family business come to be the second most complained about company in Ireland after Ryanair? Now that it has entered examinership what does that mean for consumers who have already paid for a range of items from furniture to fuel? Do they have any chance of getting their money back? And what is going to happen to this once thriving business?Conor Pope outlines the experience of Rathwood customers over the past year and what they can now expect.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced Declan Conlon and Suzanne Brennan.How money laundering has become big business in Ireland
23:27|For online fraudsters to be successful they need a web of bank accounts to first receive the money they steal and then to channel it, often out of the country.Some people, often students, willingly let their bank accounts be used in exchange for a small sum of money. For others though, they have no choice, like the victim of sextortion before the courts this month who was blackmailed into letting his Revolut account be used by a crime gang.Drug gangs still use bricks-and-mortar operations to launder money; businesses that are often cash based, from barbers to nail bars. But the volume of cash generated particularly by online fraud needs a more sophisticated banking-based solution.Ten years ago An Garda Síochána was uncovering just 50 cases of money laundering a year in Ireland, in 2025 it was nearly 2,800. So why the huge increase and does the Garda have the resources to deal with this growing category of crime?Irish Times crime and security editor Conor Lally explains why money laundering is now big business in Ireland.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey and Suzanne Brennan.How PSNI botched Katie Simpson murder investigation
22:57|When 21-year-old Katie Simpson died in August 2020 after an event in her home, why did the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) accept the version of events offered by Jonathan Creswell, the man she shared a house with? He said she had taken her own life.Why did they not look into his past as a convicted domestic abuser, or her history of presenting at hospitals with injuries and why did they so readily believe him?Nearly a year after her death he was charged with her murder and on the second day of the trial in Belfast, he killed himself.In doing so he not only denied his victim justice, he stopped the details of her death and the investigation into it being made public in a court.A 200-page report on how her murder was handled has now been published and it reveals a shocking litany of failures by police that are not simply down to poor investigation techniques but something far more ingrained and sinister: “institutional misogyny”.It also reveals that many more victims have come forward with allegations of abuse against Creswell who was active in equestrian circles in Northern Ireland.Seanín Graham, Northern correspondent of The Irish Times, explains how the report on PSNI failings has been received.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey and Andrew McNair.Iran war: what a deal could look like - and why Trump blinked first
32:05|On Wednesday, in the midst of a tentative ceasefire, Iran issued what could be the first step in a deal with the US over the Strait of Hormuz.Meanwhile Iran’s foreign minister was in Beijing meeting China’s top diplomat who urged an end to the blockade of the vital waterway and an end to the war. Could a peace deal finally be in sight?And why did German chancellor Friedrich Merz torpedo his relationship with US president Donald Trump by saying “an entire nation is being humiliated by the Iranian leadership”? Was it a tactical move by the German leader or was he shooting his mouth off? And at what cost?Also, with Trump set to visit Chinese president Xi next week, what will be on the agenda for this meeting of two of the globe’s strong men?Denis Staunton, Beijing correspondent and author of the Irish Times daily Global Briefing newsletter, considers the issues.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon.What do sky-high jet fuel prices mean for travellers?
22:32|The Iran war, which began on February 28th, has disrupted air traffic routes and pushed up jet fuel prices. That much is clear. But with the war showing little sign of resolution, what is less clear is what will happen as the aviation industry grapples with inevitable fuel shortages?The disruption to aviation has been severe in the Middle East and Asia but, to date, the impact on European airlines has been relatively minimal. Flights have been cancelled and prices have risen marginally but for most, it has been a case of travelling as usual.That though could change radically and soon as jet fuel becomes scarce and the price airlines must pay for it – already 90 per cent higher than before the war began – rises even further.The industry is now talking of rationing but what might that look like?Irish Times consumer affairs correspondent Conor Pope explains.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by John Casey and Declan Conlon.A suspected murder-suicide in Iceland with an Irish connection
17:52|In June 2025, the Mancel family left their apartment in Leopardstown in south Dublin, headed to Dublin Airport and flew to Reykjavik. They checked into the luxury Edition hotel for what appeared to be a weeklong holiday for husband Emeric Mancel (57), wife Ming Ting and their 29-year-old daughter, Catherine.But on the day they were due to fly home, Emeric and Catherine were found dead from stab wounds in the hotel.Shortly after the grim discovery in the hotel, Ming Ting was arrested and she is now facing a murder charge over the killing of her daughter Catherine. Her husband is suspected of assisting in their daughter’s death.Reykjavik-based Irish journalist Karen McHugh explains this most troubling case, including the inheritance issue; how Ming Ting changed her story and why she is being allowed to live freely in the Icelandic capital while she awaits trial.NOTE: This episode contains discussions about suicide, which some listeners may find upsetting.For support: Samaritans on freephone 116 123 or text HELLO to 50808. Pieta freephone: 1800 247 247 or text HELP to 51444. Or visit yourmentalhealth.iePresented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Suzanne Brennan.Inside the Kinahan cartel’s secret phone chats: ‘Nobody is stopping until they’re all dead’
41:59|When Sean McGovern, a trusted member of the Kinahan organised crime cartel, was extradited from Dubai last May he can’t have known the depth and breadth of the evidence gathered by the Gardaí that would prove that he had directed cartel murder plans at the height of the deadly Kinahan-Hutch feud.It was all laid out in the Special Criminal Court this week as encrypted phone messages between him and fellow gang members during 2015 and 2017 were read out, surveillance footage from over a decade ago was shown and data culled from his laptop was revealed.The solid case against McGovern (40) saw him plead guilty to two charges of directing an organised crime gang.According to Irish Times Crime and Security Editor Conor Lally, the encrypted messages read out in court show how casually the Kinahan cartel talked about taking lives – and how hard they worked at it.In this episode, Lally details how the sentencing trial unfolded, the drama in court and how McGovern, once a feared lieutenant who thought he had escaped justice by fleeing to Dubai, reacted.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Declan Conlon.