55-day murder trial collapses

The 55-day-long trial of three men charged with murdering dissident republican Peter Butterly has collapsed at the Special Criminal Court, after a failure in evidence disclosure.

Presiding judge Ms Justice Deirdre Murphy yesterday said the non-jury court had concluded that the appropriate order was to discharge itself as a jury and order a retrial of Dean Evans, aged 24, Edward McGrath, aged 33, and Sharif Kelly, aged 44.

Mr Evans, of Grange Park Rise, Raheny, Mr McGrath, of Land Dale Lawns, Springfield, Tallaght, and Mr Kelly, of Pinewood Green Rd, Balbriggan, have pleaded not guilty to murdering the 35-year-old father of two, who was shot dead in the car park of the Huntsman Inn, Gormanston, Co Meath, around 2pm on March 6, 2013.