One of Ireland’s most evil serial killers who’s ‘still a danger’ plots ‘desperate’ plan to get out of Irish prison

His new move request comes after he failed in a bid to be transferred to Arbour Hill Prison in last April.

Nash has made the application to the Department of .

The Department has now asked if he has any pending prosecutions. They will also ask the UK authorities if he is facing any possible charges.

Justice Minister Helen McEntee will then make the final ­decision on his application.

Nash is ­currently serving a life sentence for the ­barbaric murders of Sylvia Shiels, 57 and Mary Callanan, 61, at their home in Grangegorman, Dublin, in March 1997.

Drug addict Dean Lyons initially confessed to the killings before his death but Nash was later arrested when his DNA was identified on an item of clothing.

Lyons was later exonerated of any involvement in the murders.

During interviews Nash gave cops information about the crime scene which could only have been known by someone who was there.

During his trial in 2015, the court heard how in a frenzied attack he stabbed the women and slashed their throats and faces.

He used a carving fork and other implements during the ­brutal incident. The level of ­mutilation had never before been seen in a murder in .

APPLICATION REJECTION

The psycho, 51, was also hit with another double life sentence for butchering Catherine, 29, and Carl Doyle, 30, in Co Roscommon in August 1997.

It is believed he will likely die in jail after his application to the European Court of Human Rights over his conviction for the Grangegorman murders was rejected in 2020.

If Nash’s bid to be transferred to England is successful, armed gardai would be responsible for the transfer due to the “high security risk” he poses.

One senior prison source told The Irish Sun: “Nash is desperate to get out of the Midlands Prison. He’s on a restricted prison regime and is still regarded as a danger to the community.

“When he failed in his transfer to Dublin he was determined to pursue a new strategy.

'REMAINS CONFIDENT'

“He maintains that he still has a few relatives in the UK and that’s why he wants the move.

“He doesn’t have many visitors to the Midlands and remains confident of the transfer.”

If he is sent to the UK, Nash — who formed close friendships with killers Graham Dwyer and Joe O’Reilly — will receive a jail tariff for his double life sentence.

It’s possible he could be hit with an order to spend the rest of his life in prison.

Any remaining ­relatives of his victims would also have to be informed of the move.

CASE REVIEW

Nash received the life sentence for the murder of Sylvia and Mary in 2015 after a review of the case by the Serious Crime Review Team.

He was caught after DNA from his jacket was linked to the pair.

His application to the European Court of Human Rights to have the convictions overturned was rejected in 2020.

He went to the Strasbourg court after claiming there was an “excessive delay” in bringing his case before the courts.

But the top EU court said his application was not admissible as he was too late bringing it.

Dismissing Nash’s appeal at the Supreme Court, Mr Justice Alan Mahon said it was the “strong view” of the three-judge court that Nash’s trial for the Grangegorman murders was “entirely fair” and it “produced a verdict well justified”.

A spokesman for the Irish Prison Service said they do not comment on individual cases.