A POST-MORTEM on the body of Eugene 'Dutchy' Holland – the chief suspect for the murder of crime reporter Veronica Guerin – is set to take place on Tuesday.

It is expected to show that the career criminal died from natural causes, related to an ongoing heart problem that he suffered from.

Holland's body will then be flown back to Dublin after the autopsy, and he will be buried towards the end of the week beside his late brother.

In a bizarre statement yesterday, his lawyer Giovanni di Stefano said Holland planned to murder a high-profile detective upon his release from prison.

However, di Stefano convinced him not to go ahead with it and that he could better prove his innocence through the law courts.

The controversial lawyer also said he planned to publish Holland's memoirs, which were almost completed when he died.

The 70-year-old's death will be the subject of the standard investigation that follows the death of any inmate. "As with all deaths in custody, the prisons and probation ombudsman will conduct an investigation," a spokes­person said.

Holland was found dead in his cell at 6am in Parkhurst prison on the Isle of Wight on Friday morning.

He was serving an eight-year sentence for plotting to kidnap a wealthy businessman in a honey-trap operation, using a young woman as bait.

Holland had only been free for less than a year after serving a 12-year sentence for drug trafficking at Portlaoise Prison.

When he first appeared on those drugs charges, Garda Marion Cusack revealed in evidence his link to the murder of Guerin.

She said: "I had formed the opinion that Patrick Holland was the man who shot dead Veronica."