Killing of David Byrne

2016 murder in Dublin

2016 Regency Hotel Shooting

Part of Hutch–Kinahan feud
Location| Regency Hotel, Whitehall, Dublin
Coordinates| 53°22′39″N 6°14′45″W﻿ / ﻿53.37740°N 6.24593°W﻿ / 53.37740; -6.24593
Date| 5 February 2016 (2016-02-05)

Attack type

| shooting
Weapons| 3 PM md. 63 Assault Rifles Multiple Handguns
Deaths| 1
Injured| 2
Perpetrators| 6
Motive| Revenge on Kinahan Gang for the murder of Gary Hutch
Regency Hotel

The Irish criminal David Byrne was shot dead on 5 February 2016 at the Regency Hotel in Whitehall, Dublin.[1]

It is believed by the Garda Síochána that Daniel Kinahan, the son of Christy Kinahan, was the intended target, but had left early.[2][3][4]

## Background

[edit]

Byrne had been investigated by every Garda specialist unit since he was a teenager.[5] He was present at the fatal stabbing of Declan Gavin in August 2001 in Crumlin, Dublin.[5] He was called as a witness in the trial of Brian Rattigan for the killing, but said he had seen nothing.[5]

David Byrne had been arrested many times and was a suspect in the murder of Gary Bryan in Walkinstown in 2006.[1]

In January 2016 Gardaí had a special policing plan put in place for the following month when two boxing events would be attended by members of a criminal gang associated with Christy Kinahan.[6] The Kinahan gang have a long association with boxing both in Dublin and Marbella.[7]

## Shooting

[edit]

On 5 February 2016 there was to be a boxing match for the WBO European lightweight title between Jamie Kavanagh and Antonio João Bento at the Regency Hotel in Whitehall, Dublin. At the weigh-in there was an organised armed attack; the match was cancelled after the shooting.[8] There were at least four attackers with masks, army style-helmets and flak jackets, two of whom were disguised as members of the Garda Emergency Response Unit and armed with AK-47s. An associate of the Kinahan cartel, David Byrne (34) was shot dead; security sources said that the gang had intended to kill others. Two men were injured and taken to the Mater Private Hospital and Beaumont Hospital.[8]

After the attack, security camera recordings suggested that six people had been involved, including a man disguised as a woman.[9] The attackers escaped in a Ford Transit van which was later found burnt-out.[8]

## Funeral

[edit]

Because of the length of time Byrne's body would be waked at his parents' house before the funeral, special security measures were put in place.[10] The funeral was held at the Church of St Nicholas of Myra, Francis Street.[10] Gardaí checked the church before and after the ceremony for explosives but the funeral passed without incident and the hearse went to Mount Jerome Cemetery.[10]

## Investigation

[edit]

One line of investigation is that the shooting was in revenge for the murder of Gary Hutch in Spain in September 2015.[8]

Shortly after the shooting a call was placed to the BBC saying that the Continuity IRA had carried out the attack because Byrne had been involved in the killing of Alan Ryan four years before; however, the Continuity IRA later stated that it was not responsible.[11]

## Legal

[edit]

On 18 May 2016 Patrick Hutch, the brother of Gary Hutch, was charged at the Criminal Courts of Justice with the murder of David Byrne. There was no application for bail; the defendant was granted legal aid and remanded to appear in Clover Hill District Court on 25 May.[12][13] The trial of Patrick Hutch for murder and possession of firearms was later set for January 2018 at the non-jury Special Criminal Court; he was denied bail.[14] On 20 February 2019, all charges against Patrick Hutch were dropped and he walked free from court.[15]

In October 2019 the High Court ordered the Director of Public Prosecutions to provide transcripts of the collapsed trial to the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission.[16] Jonathan Dowdall, a former Sinn Féin counciller, was subsequently charged with the Regency murder.[17]

In April 2021, Gerry Hutch became the subject of a European Arrest Warrant as Gardaí said they had enough evidence to charge him with murder in connection with the shooting of David Byrne.[18] The EAW was issued after the Director for Public Prosecutions moved that he be charged with murder and tried before the Special Criminal Court.[18] He is also likely to face other charges, such as attempted murder and possession of firearms.[18] An investigation file was submitted by Garda detectives based in Ballymun to the DPP late in 2020.[18]

In April 2021 three men appeared in court in relation to the shooting.[19] In August 2021 Gerry Hutch was arrested in Spain on foot of the European Arrest Warrant in connection with the shooting.[20][21][22] In September 2021 Gerry Hutch was extradited to the Republic of Ireland and charged with the murder of David Byrne.[23]

On 28 September 2022 both Jonathan Dowdall and his father Patrick pleaded guilty to facilitating the murder of David Byrne.[24]

On 3 October 2022 the Special Criminal Court was told that Jonathan Dowdall was willing to be a witness in the Regency shooting trial.[25] The trial was adjourned for a week.[25] Though Dowdall had been convicted of facilitating the murder, the charge of murder against him had been dropped.[25] Dowdall is under Garda protection and is being assessed for the witness protection programme.[25]

In April 2023 Gerry Hutch was acquitted of the murder of David Byrne.[26]

## Aftermath

[edit]

The hotel was renamed the Bonnington in October 2017.[27] The renaming had been considered before the shooting, but the process was accelerated after it.[27]

## See also

[edit]

* Hutch–Kinahan feud
* List of unsolved murders

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Foy, Ken (6 February 2016). "Murder victim David Byrne (34) was one of the capital's most notorious gangland criminals". Irish Independent. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
2. ^ O'Keeffe, Cormac (8 February 2016). "Gardaí believe main target jumped out a window to escape Regency hotel attack". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
3. ^ Lally, Conor (8 February 2016). "Regency Hotel shooting: Cutbacks saw gardaí miss a big target". The Irish Times. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
4. ^ O'Neill, Sean (13 June 2020). "Daniel Kinahan: Tyson Fury's adviser is on radar of UK drug unit". The Times. Retrieved 13 June 2020.
5. ^ a b c Lally, Conor (7 February 2016). "David Byrne profile: Victim one of a new breed of criminal". The Irish Times. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
6. ^ Foy, Ken (30 January 2016). "Armed gardai on alert as Kinahan mob fly in for boxing events". The Herald. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
7. ^ Foy, Ken (6 February 2016). "Kinahan mob is heavily involved in professional boxing". Irish Independent. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
8. ^ a b c d "Major investigation into fatal hotel shooting gets under way". RTÉ News and Current Affairs. 6 February 2016. Retrieved 2 July 2016.
9. ^ Henry McDonald (7 February 2016). "Murders in Spain, and a Dublin attack with AK-47s: the deadly 20-year war of Ireland's drug cartels". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
10. ^ a b c O'Keefe, Cormac; Ó Cionnaith, Fiachra; McEnroe, Juno (11 February 2016). "5-day Garda op for David Byrne funeral". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 25 March 2016.
11. ^ Gordon Rayner (9 February 2016). "AK-47s used in Dublin shooting 'could have been former IRA weapons' peace process observer says". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
12. ^ "Man charged with Regency Hotel murder". RTÉ News and Current Affairs. 18 May 2016. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
13. ^ "David Byrne murder: Man in court over Dublin boxing weigh-in attack". BBC News. 18 May 2016. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
14. ^ Natasha Reid (21 December 2016). "Patrick Hutch denied bail over David Byrne Regency Hotel murder". Dublin Live. Retrieved 13 September 2017.
15. ^ "David Byrne murder: Death of detective leads to trial collapse". BBC News. 20 February 2019. Retrieved 14 April 2010.
16. ^ O'Loughlin, Ann (18 October 2019). "High Court orders DPP to give collapsed Hutch murder trial transcripts to GSOC". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
17. ^ "Former Sinn Féin counciller charged with Regency murder". RTÉ News. 27 April 2021. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
18. ^ a b c d Williams, Paul (20 April 2021). "European hunt for Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch as arrest warrant issued over Regency Hotel attack". Irish Independent. Retrieved 20 April 2021.
19. ^ Schiller, Robin (20 April 2021). "Three Dublin men appear in court charged in relation to Regency Hotel murder". Irish Independent. Retrieved 21 April 2021.
20. ^ Reynolds, Paul (12 August 2021). "Gerard 'The Monk' Hutch arrested in Spain". RTÉ News. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
21. ^ O'Connor, Niall (12 August 2021). "Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch arrested in Spain in connection with Regency Hotel shooting". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
22. ^ Sunderland, Ciarán; McGrath, Dominic (12 August 2021). "Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch arrested in Spain". Irish Examiner. Press Association. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
23. ^ O'Riordan, Alison (29 September 2021). "Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch charged with the murder of David Byrne at the Regency Hotel in 2016". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 29 September 2021.
24. ^ Neilan, Paul (28 September 2022). "Jonathan Dowdall and father Patrick plead guilty to facilitating 2016 Regency Hotel murder". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
25. ^ a b c d MacNamee, Garreth (3 October 2022). "Gerry Hutch trial: Case adjourned for a week as court hears Dowdall willing to act as witness". TheJournal.ie. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
26. ^ "Gerard Hutch not guilty of the murder of David Byrne at Regency Hotel". Irish Times. 17 April 2023. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
27. ^ a b Feehan, Conor (7 October 2017). "New name and a fresh start as feud-hit Regency Hotel becomes the Bonnington". Irish Independent. Retrieved 3 December 2017.