Colin Casey jailed for impeding prosecution of killers

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

Colin Casey was jailed for four years and six months at the Special Criminal Court on 12 April 2019. Daniel Hegarty was jailed for four years. The proceedings were reported on 12 April 2019.

Casey and Hegarty had each pleaded guilty to four counts of impeding the apprehension or prosecution of Aidan O’Driscoll’s killers. Eoin Morrissey had pleaded guilty to two counts of the same offence.

O’Driscoll was shot dead on Old Commons Road in Blackpool, Cork City, on 7 December 2016. Sentencing Casey, Mr Justice Tony Hunt said his assistance consisted of sourcing cars used in the murder and acting as a support driver. The judge said the prosecution had not alleged that any of the defendants knew they were assisting a murder, but that they must have known they were assisting high-level criminal activity.

Casey received concurrent sentences of four years and six months on all counts, while Hegarty received four years on each count, also to run concurrently. Both sentences were backdated to 11 March 2019. Mr Justice Hunt sat with Judge Gerard Griffin and Judge Ann Ryan.

Morrissey’s sentence was adjourned until 21 October for a probation report. Mr Justice Hunt said a suspended sentence had to be considered, subject to a favourable report, and that community service was another option.