Courts / Dublin / Report

Chief witness in Jim Mansfield Jnr trial lied to court, defence say

Summary

In the Special Criminal Court, defence counsel Bernard Condon SC argued that the State's chief witness, Martin Byrne, had lied and was unreliable. Condon said Byrne had told the Criminal Assets Bureau about IRA ties but denied them in court, and later could not recall what he had said. He claimed Byrne's testimony was dishonest and muddled, and that there was no evidence the abduction was intended to evict Byrne from The Towers. Prosecution counsel Shane Costelloe SC maintained that Jim Mansfield Jnr. lured Byrne to a remote office where former terrorist Dessie O'Hare and criminal Declan 'Whacker' Duffy abducted him to evict him from Mansfield's property. Mansfield, 54, pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to falsely imprison Byrne and to perverting the course of justice by directing Byrne's brother to destroy CCTV. The judge, Alex Owens, set a mention for 15 November, with no verdict date announced. The case remains at the hearing stage.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Chief witness in Jim Mansfield Jnr trial lied to court, defence say. Charges or matters: conspiring with one or more persons to falsely imprison Martin Byrne on a date unknown between January 1, 2015 and June 30, 2015; falsely imprisoning Mr Byrne. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

• November 15 Hearing Or Sentence
• January 1, 2015 Hearing Or Sentence
• June 30, 2015 Other
• June 9, 2015 Other
• June 12, 2015 Other
• 2021-10-08 Publication

Why: He said the reason for the abduction was so that Duffy and O'Hare would evict Mr Byrne from his home at The Towers, owned by Mr Mansfield. CNI source report

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Sentence

Related court reports

• Man charged with having 56k child abuse images and videos remanded on bail
• Ex-Dáil hopeful's allegations against former employer 'complete fantasy', WRC told
• Mater must pay €10k to worker who said he was wrongly accused of abusing patient
• 'I think we know I won't be getting bail' - Daniel Kinahan charged with directing criminal organisation
• Letting agent who claimed alleged domestic violence victim abandoned tenancy by fleeing to refuge must pay €14.7k
• 77-year-old with 470 convictions told Luas staff to 'f**k off'

Read the original CNI report