Aaron Brady appeals murder conviction over withheld recording

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Aaron Brady was appealing his conviction for the murder of Det Garda Adrian Donohoe before the Court of Appeal. He was jailed in 2020 for a minimum of 40 years. The proceedings were reported on 6 October 2023.

On the third day of the appeal hearing, Brady’s barrister, Michael O’Higgins, argued that the trial court had been wrong to exclude a recording of a conversation between Suspect A and US special agent Matt Katske. The conversation took place at Belfast Airport in July 2017 and was covertly recorded by Suspect A.

Brady’s lawyers said Katske appeared to offer help with citizenship in return for information that would convict Brady. Suspect A’s brother was then under threat of being sent home from the US. O’Higgins argued that the recording showed both a threat and an inducement.

Daniel Cahill gave evidence that Brady had told him on three occasions that he had shot a garda. The defence claimed Cahill may have been pressured by Homeland Security with the threat of deportation if he refused to make a statement to gardaí.

Trial judge Mr Justice Michael White refused to allow the tape to be played to the jury or questioning of Katske about it. He said the issue was collateral and that Cahill and special agent Mary Ann Wade had repeatedly said under cross-examination that no inducements were offered for Cahill’s statement.

Dean Kelly, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, said the tape did not have the relevance claimed by the defence. The appeal was continuing, and the report said a complaint concerning witness Molly Staunton was expected to be raised when it resumed on Monday.