Christy Griffin (37) was sentenced for the abuse of the girl, which started when she was just eight years old.

From Dublin's north inner city, he is the prime suspect in the murder of Thomas Byrne who was shot dead outside a pub in Summerhill seven years ago.

Byrne (41) was drinking with his friends outside O'Neill's pub in April 2000 when a man walked up to him and shot him in the head. The gunman escaped in a Nissan car driven by an accomplice and was never identified.

However, detectives suspect Griffin was involved and carried out the murder in revenge after Byrne beat up the man who was then in charge of the IRA in Dublin. Griffin and the former IRA officer-in-command are regarded as being very close and Griffin is suspected of carrying out over a dozen robberies in Dublin Port in which several million euro worth of computer equipment and cigarettes were stolen.

The IRA man subsequently stepped down from his position but continued to carry out robberies without the approval of the organisation and kept the proceeds for himself. He was too close to the Northern leadership to be subject to internal disciplinary procedures. He has a house in Rathfarnham worth around 2.5m and has amassed a fortune from his time with the IRA.

He is still known to keep in touch with Griffin. While Griffin was never officially allowed to join the IRA, he made it clear to people in the north inner city that he was being protected by the organisation and operated with impunity.

Griffin is well known to gardai and has a long and chequered criminal history. He has 18 previous convictions for a wide variety of offences including armed robbery and drugs offences. He was jailed for six years for possession of guns and ammunition in 1986 and was handed a further three-year term for robbery and drug dealing in 1987. He is currently facing a hefty bill from the Criminal Assets Bureau.

His nephew, Colin 'Collie' Griffin, was shot dead by gardai from the Emergency Response Unit after attempting to shoot officers during a botched robbery at Lusk Post Office in May 2005.

Griffin, a father of two daughters, is in a long-term relationship with his victim's mother and moved into their family home. He started abusing his step-daughter in 1993, just weeks after starting the relationship with her mother. He would touch her inappropriately when her mother was out and then apologise. The abuse started to get worse when she turned 12 and Griffin raped her for the first time when she was 16.

The girl plucked up the courage to inform gardai and Griffin was charged with one count of oral rape in 1998, one count of rape in 2001 and nine charges of indecent assault from dates from 1993 to 1998. He went on trial last January and was subsequently convicted.

The victim's mother initially supported her daughter, but later changed her mind and moved back in with Griffin and effectively disowned the victim. This led to a bloody feud which continues to this day and has claimed the lives of two people so far. Gerard Byrne and Stephen Ledden were both murdered as part of the feud and there have been a series of both gun and grenade attacks since then.

Griffin was convicted of the rapes and sexual assaults on 18 January last and had been remanded in custody since then.

His trial had to take place at the secure Cloverhill Court over fears that there could be attacks, and the jury members required garda protection.