Gardaí 'had eyes' on Hutch and Dowdall's trip to North, court told
A prison van under heavy Garda escort leaves the Special Criminal Court where the trial of Gerry Hutch, for the murder of David Byrne, continues. PIC: Collins Courts
On two occasions that Gerard Hutch is alleged to have gone on a northbound journey with Jonathan Dowdall in February and March 2016, they were the subject of extensive Garda surveillance.
Day nine of the trial of Hutch, charged with the murder of David Byrne on 5 February 2016, heard again from garda members attached to the covert National Surveillance Unit (NSU) on what they saw and when on key dates after the events in the Regency Hotel.
Again, the court was cleared of members of the public for much of the proceedings so that NSU members can give evidence on an anonymised basis. Ms Justice Tara Burns, in granting the request for this to occur, said last week that if members of this garda unit were to be publicised, it “places them at risk”.
The evidence given by NSU members on Tuesday further demonstrates the depth of surveillance that had been undertaken in the aftermath of the Regency shooting, with each member reporting their observations over the radio as events unfolded each day.
On the 7 March 2016, a garda referred to in court as Member T described being tasked with surveilling Dowdall’s Toyota Land Cruiser as it was making its way northwards through Louth.
Member T said he observed the vehicle just before the M1 toll plaza at around 3.45pm. He said he identified the driver as Jonathan Dowdall and the front-seat passenger as Gerry Hutch. Hutch, he said, was wearing a dark “beanie hat”.
Under cross examination, T told the court that he had pulled into the hard shoulder and gotten out of his car while the dual carriageway was still two lanes, before opening up at the toll plaza.
“I was expecting the Land Cruiser,” he said, indicating there had been information already relayed that the vehicle was heading in that direction.
When the Toyota being driven Dowdall passed him, T said he was a “matter of feet” away from it and it wasn’t going at an “excessive speed”.
He said that members of the NSU may not have identified the second man in the car at that stage, but he was in a position to identify Hutch as that man.
The court has already heard that it’s the prosecution’s case that Dowdall travelled northwards with Hutch on two occasions in the aftermath of the Regency shooting.
Prosecuting counsel Sean Gillane SC previously told the court that Hutch had asked Dowdall to arrange a meeting with provisional republicans to mediate or resolve the Hutch-Kinahan feud due to the threats against the accused's family and friends.
On the previous date, Saturday, February 20, 2016, a garda BZ described observing the Land Cruiser parked at an address in Forest Park, Killygordon, Co Donegal, at around 11am. The court has already heard that Hutch and Dowdall met with Shane Rowan at this location.
Rowan was arrested for possession of the AK-47-style guns used in the Regency shootings in March 2016. He was later jailed for possession of these weapons and for IRA membership.
This same garda described seeing the Land Cruiser travelling southbound near the border with the North later on that evening. He described seeing just one person in this vehicle, which he allowed to overtake him on the motorway.
Some of the NSU members who gave evidence ton Tuesday referred to contemporaneous notes they had made on the day of these observations. Some had not made notes, and defence counsel made a point of questioning each one about this fact.
Brendan Grehan SC, for Hutch, teased out how these members who did not take notes would relay their observations over the radio and then make a statement to that effect later.
Another bone of contention for Hutch’s defence team was whether any of the NSU members had conducted surveillance north of the border.
Mr Grehan asked Member BZ if there was some protocol for members who are crossing into the North.
The garda replied he would not conduct duties in any way if he crossed over. He said it “wouldn’t be a regular thing” for members to cross the border for travel but may do so if it’s a quick method to travel to another part of this jurisdiction if necessary.
For example, Mr Grehan asked if he was going to a northern part of Donegal for the course of his work, if it would be a standard thing to drive through to the North. Member BZ said if he had to be in Donegal tomorrow, he wouldn’t drive through the North and said he “likes the countryside in Sligo”.
Mr Grehan also asked Member CZ if there was a tracker on the Toyota Land Cruiser on the evening of March 7 to which the member replied: “I’m going to claim privilege in relation to that”.
Such claims of privilege may feature again as the trial continues.
Another facet of the evidence before the court on Tuesday concerned the collection of CCTV evidence in the North related to this case. The court has already seen footage allegedly showing Hutch and Dowdall at a BP garage buying fuel, as well as later at the Quays Shopping Centre in Newry.
A civilian witness who had worked at the Quays described receiving a request from the PSNI on February 28, 2016, for footage related to February 20, just a week prior.
Retired PSNI Detective Sergeant Andrew Madden then described to the court receiving a request from a superior to go inquire about CCTV at these two locations, and later handing this footage over to a garda.
The trial continues.
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