'Considerable thought and preparation' put into Gareth Hutch's murder, court hears
Three Dubliners accused of murdering Gareth Hutch put “considerable thought and preparation” into his “truly shocking” killing which was not a “spur of the moment” attack, a prosecution barrister has told the Special Criminal Court.
The barrister submitted that for whatever reason Jonathan Keogh (32) and Regina Keogh (41) believed that Gareth Hutch posed some sort of threat to their safety. The only way to remove that threat, he said, was to kill Gareth Hutch.
The prosecutor said it was not only two gunmen that carried out this “brutal” shooting in broad daylight but that others had assisted in the execution of this attack. “One doesn’t need to be the person who pulled the trigger to be guilty of murder,” he said.
Mr Hutch (36), nephew of Gerry "the monk" Hutch was shot dead as he was getting into his car outside Avondale House flats on North Cumberland Street in Dublin on the morning of May 24, 2016. He died as a result of four gun shot injuries.
The prosecution contend that Jonathan Keogh threatened to kill Mr Hutch the evening before the shooting, that Thomas Fox (31) and Regina Keogh were instrumental in planning the murder, and Mr Keogh and another man, Mr AB, were the shooters.
Mr Fox with an address at Rutland Court, Dublin 1, Ms Keogh from Avondale House, Cumberland Street North, Dublin 1 and Mr Keogh of Gloucester Place, Dublin 1, have pleaded not guilty to murdering Mr Hutch.
Mr Fox has also denied unlawfully possessing a Makarov 9mm handgun on May 23, 2016 at the same place.
Closing the prosecution case this morning, Paul Burns SC said he did not intend to rehearse the entire evidence but would refer to what the prosecution regard as the “most salient aspects” of the case.
Mr Burns said Mr Keogh saw himself as the protector of his sister, Regina, and his extended family as he was fearful of an attack upon them. Mr Keogh would appear to have had the view that Gareth Hutch posed some sort of a threat to his sister, he said.
Evidence has been heard that a heated exchange took place between Mr Keogh and Gareth Hutch in the car park on the day prior to the shooting but it appeared to end with the parties shaking hands.
The barrister said Mary McDonnell, who is the key prosecution witness in the trial, had nothing to gain by giving evidence but rather put herself in a very difficult position in which she was “removed” from the small world she resided in and felt comfortable in.
“It is quite clear there is no substantial financial benefit accruing to Mrs McDonnell as a result of her giving evidence,” he added.
During the trial the court heard evidence from the protected witness, Mrs McDonnell, who identified Mr Keogh from CCTV footage as one of the gunmen who carried out the attack on Mr Hutch.
Mrs McDonnell was originally charged with withholding information but that charge was dropped and she has been given immunity from prosecution.
What was needed was a safe hide-out to allow the attack take place, Mr Burns said, and Mrs McDonnell’s flat was this “ideal location”. “Without that location, the plan was not going to work,” he said.
The prosecution contend that witness Mrs McDonnell was encouraged by her “best friend” and neighbour Regina Keogh to allow Jonathan Keogh use her flat “as a base” to wait for Mr Hutch prior to the attack. Her kitchen window had a view into Mr Hutch’s flat.
Mr Burns said Mrs McDonnell did not try to minimise her role in this event or shift the blame. She admitted that she allowed her flat to be used, he said, and admitted there was “talk” of her getting paid.
The statement she made to gardai in her flat on the day after the shooting, he said, was before any issue of favours or immunity had arisen.
Mrs McDonnell insisted in her evidence that Johnathan Keogh was in her flat on the morning Gareth Hutch was shot dead, despite telling the court that she had only seen part of his face. She also identified Mr Fox and Mr Keogh as the men who came into her flat the night before with two guns.
Mr Burns said neither men challenged Mrs McDonnell’s evidence concerning going to her flat that night with guns.
The barrister said it was an unfortunate coincidence that Mr Fox and Mr Keogh “turn up” at Mrs McDonnell’s flat that evening to clean their guns and less than 12 hours later Mr Hutch is “gunned down” in the car park of the flats complex.
While Mrs McDonnell is possibly a vulnerable person and socially dependent on Regina Keogh, Mr Burns said, she was a truthful witness and the court could act on her evidence.
There was no evidence of animosity between the two women for one to suspect Mrs McDonnell was fabricating her evidence or had "some ulterior motive”, he said.
It is the State's case that Jonathan Keogh was heard expressing his intention to kill Mr Hutch the evening before the shooting in Mrs McDonnell’s flat.
Mr Burns submitted that this conversation is clearly admissible against Mr Keogh as it is so close in time to Mr Hutch’s murder. “What we are dealing with here is a plan to kill Gareth Hutch,” he said.
The killing of Mr Hutch, he said, did not start in the car park on May 24, it was planned “well in advance” and various communications had to be maintained to ensure everything was “running smoothly”.
Regina Keogh, he said, helped procure Mrs McDonnell’s flat to “effectively stake out” Gareth Hutch’s house. Evidence in the case, he said, shows Ms Keogh to be a “central and fundamental participant” in the plan and murder of Gareth Hutch.
Regina Keogh knew what was planned days before the shooting and was working to put the necessary parts of the plan in place, Mr Burns said.
During the trial, the court heard evidence that Mrs McDonnell told Regina she could not let Jonathan Keogh sit in her flat as her husband would not like it. Regina replied: “That’s the only way it is going to happen, if not Jonathan is going to be shot.”
Referring to this today, Mr Burns said it seemed to Regina that is was “either a Johnny or Gareth situation” and she was determined it was going to be a “Gareth and not Johnny” situation.
The forensic evidence, the eye witness accounts and the movement of the vehicles create a “combined cumulative” effect which when taken together create guilty verdicts, he added.
Mr Burns will resume his closing speech this afternoon in front of Mr Justice Tony Hunt, presiding, sitting with Judge Patricia Ryan and Judge Michael Walsh.
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