Witness tells Regency trial of moment men dressed as gardai started shooting

A witness at the Special Criminal Court has described the moment armed attackers disguised as gardaí opened fire at a boxing weigh-in held at the Regency Hotel in Dublin on 5 February 2016. The court heard that assailants arrived at the venue while the event was underway, with one man wearing a blonde wig and another a cap, both presenting themselves as members of An Garda Síochána. According to testimony from Mel Christie, former president of the Boxing Union of Ireland, the initial gunfire triggered panic among those gathered. One of the men then discharged shots at a person in the crowd. Other witnesses corroborated accounts describing the attacker in the wig and the shooter dressed in garda uniform. Patrick Hutch, aged twenty-five, is charged with the murder of David Byrne, a member of the Kinahan organised crime group. He denies the charge and also denies three counts of possessing AK47 assault rifles in connection with the fatal attack. The case is being heard before a three-judge panel at the non-jury court. The trial has previously heard evidence that three AK-47 assault rifles were recovered from a vehicle near Slane in County Meath on 9 March 2016, with bullet casings from those weapons matching those recovered from the murder scene. Prosecutors have also detailed a conspiracy involving the provision of vehicles used in the incident. Two other men, Gerard Hutch and Paul Murphy, have pleaded not guilty to participation in or contribution to the murder. A third co-accused, Jason Bonney, denies participating in the murder by providing access to motor vehicles. The trial continues at the Special Criminal Court in Dublin.