Dowdall tells Hutch trial he was ‘set up’ over Regency murder

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

Former Sinn Féin councillor Jonathan Dowdall told the Special Criminal Court that he had been “set up” over the murder of David Byrne and that Gerard Hutch had put pressure on him after he was granted bail.

Gerard Hutch has pleaded not guilty to murdering Byrne at the Regency Hotel in February 2016. The proceedings were reported on 14 December 2022.

The murder charge against Dowdall was dropped, and he was serving four years in prison for helping a criminal gang commit the murder.

Under cross-examination, Dowdall said he was not involved in the murder. He said people had booked a hotel room for a gunman he did not know and had tied the room back to him and his family. He said he had already decided to speak to gardaí but could not tell Hutch.

Dowdall said his bail conditions barred him from associating with members of the Hutch family. He alleged that Hutch nevertheless imposed demands on him, including that he make himself available to his solicitor, and that people had come to his home. He described it as “a massive amount of pressure”.

Presiding judge Ms Justice Tara Burns warned against recording the proceedings after prosecuting counsel Sean Gillane said footage from an overflow court had circulated online. Dowdall’s cross-examination was due to continue the following day.