Dowdall looks aged and subdued as he receives four-year sentence
Members of the Garda Public Order Unit enter the Criminal Courts of Justice, Dublin, ahead of the sentencing of Jonathan Dowdall. Picture: Niall Carson/PA Wire
Though his preened good looks are gone, replaced by strained facial features and large bags under his eyes, Jonathan Dowdall seemed unfazed when he was handed a four-year jail term for his role in a murder that ignited the Kinahan-Hutch feud.
Chewing lightly on some gum during the sentencing hearing, the 44-year-old looked blankly ahead as Mr Justice Tony Hunt, presiding at the Special Criminal Court, issued the sentence.
It is the first sentence to be handed down in relation to the notorious gun attack at the Regency Hotel, north Dublin, in February 2016, in which Kinahan lieutenant David Byrne was shot dead.
Patrick Dowdall, Jonathan’s 65-year-old father, also showed little reaction when he was landed with a two-year sentence, though he was labouring with a cough.
While talking among themselves, the family of the murder victim did not make any audible public comments in the court.
This may reflect what lies ahead, both for them and Jonathan Dowdall, who, the court has heard, has given a statement against others accused in the Regency murder, including his former friend, Gerry ‘The Monk’ Hutch.
His trial, and that of Jason Bonney and Paul Murphy, is due to start on Tuesday before the non-jury court.
The decision, revealed just two weeks ago, that Jonathan Dowdall was turning State witness — and was being assessed for inclusion in the secret Witness Security Programme — sent shockwaves throughout organised crime.
The Hutch trial is set to be the most high-profile gangland case before the three-judge court over the last two decades, since the John Gilligan trial in 2002 for the murder of Veronica Guerin.
The Dowdalls were brought by gardaí to the Court of Criminal Justice escorted by two military jeeps, before being ushered to Court Number 17 on the sixth floor through the interior of the complex.
Armed gardaí and public order units were stationed outside the building and inside the foyer.
But there was no tension outside or inside the courtroom, where members of David Byrne’s family, including mother Sadie and father James, sat waiting for the sentencing to begin.
When Jonathan and Patrick entered, from the jury room, they walked passed the Byrne family, Jonathan looking in their direction, and circled over to the defendants’ area and sat, flanked by two prison officers.
Wearing blue jeans and a blue sweater, his brown hair gelled to the side, Jonathan briefly took a seat, joined by his father, who sported a silver goatie and a blue jacket.
Rising as the judges entered the court, Jonathan gave the bench in front of him a slight wrap of his knuckle as proceedings began.
His barrister, Michael O’Higgins SC, flagged that he and his client might have been expecting a jail term, despite him turning State witness.
He said that “in the event of a custodial sentence”, that certain dates might help the court, and outlined what discretion was available in terms of length of sentence.
Patrick Dowdall leaned forward and held his hand to his face, looking thoughtful, while his son bowed his head, subdued.
During a brief recess, they chatted together, Jonathan cupping his hand over his mouth to conceal what he was saying.
The former Sinn Féin councillor was originally due to stand trial for Mr Byrne’s murder, along with Gerry Hutch, but the DPP withdrew that charge and Mr Dowdall pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of facilitating the murder, as did his father.
They had made a room at the Regency Hotel available to the gang that carried out the murder on February 4, 2016, during the ‘Clash of the Clans’ boxing weigh-in, attended by Kinahan cartel boss Daniel Kinahan.
When Mr Justice Hunt re-entered the court, joined by Judge Martin Nolan and Judge James Faughnan, he outlined their considerations on the appropriate sentence to hand down.
Taking into account the “extraordinary” factor that Jonathan Dowdall had given a statement of evidence against co-accused, he cut the headline figure they had identified — that of eight years — down to four years, with his father landing a two-year term, backdated.
Mr O’Higgins asked the court to defer the warrant sending them to prison for two weeks — and remain for that period in protective custody — to allow them to engage with professional persons and settle certain affairs.
Judge Hunt acceded to the "unusual" application.
The father and son looked relatively relaxed as the hearing ended. They walked smartly in a circuitous route across the room, with Jonathan nodding to someone in the body of the court as he exited a door.
He is due back before the Special Criminal Court over the coming months — this time to give evidence against 'The Monk'.
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