Dean Byrne loses appeal over witness interference conspiracy

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

Dean Byrne lost his appeal against his conviction for conspiring to pervert the course of justice at the Court of Appeal, with the ruling reported on 3 December 2025.

The court upheld the finding that Byrne unlawfully sent Daniel Cahill’s garda statement to a third party while trying to dissuade him from giving evidence in Aaron Brady’s murder trial. The Special Criminal Court had found Byrne conspired with Brady between 8 April and 22 June 2020.

The Court of Appeal said the broader question of whether every attempt to dissuade a witness is an offence should be considered in an appropriate case. Byrne’s two-year sentence remained in place; the Director of Public Prosecutions intended to appeal its leniency, with a hearing date yet to be set.