The Court of Appeal has affirmed Gary Campion’s conviction for the murder of Frank Ryan, rejecting all grounds of appeal. The court held that the conviction was properly left to the jury and that its conclusion was open to it.
A Central Criminal Court jury convicted Campion by a 10–2 majority on 28 May 2009 of murdering Ryan in Moyross, Co Limerick, on 17 September 2006. He received the mandatory life sentence on 8 July 2009, backdated to 23 September 2006. His appeal was heard by the Court of Appeal, which delivered judgment on 30 November 2015.
The main appeal concerned statements made to gardaí by Erol Ibrahim, who had been in the car with Ryan. Ibrahim initially said he did not know who shot Ryan. After meeting Peter Ryan, the deceased’s brother, at a garda station, he identified Campion in later recorded interviews. At trial, Ibrahim accepted he had made those statements but said they were lies and that he would have said anything to get out of custody.
The prosecution sought to have the earlier statements admitted under section 16 of the Criminal Justice Act 2006. Campion argued, among other things, that the encounter with Peter Ryan involved unfair pressure and should have been recorded, and that the statements were not voluntary or reliable. The appeal court found the meeting was not a Garda interview requiring recording under the regulations. It also upheld the trial judge’s decision to admit the later statements, noting the trial judge had heard extensive evidence and viewed the interview recordings. The Court of Appeal said the jury had to decide whether Ibrahim was truthful when he named Campion.
The court also rejected challenges concerning the jury’s exposure to a newspaper article that referred to Campion in connection with an earlier killing, a search warrant, and Gardaí serving as jury minders. It concluded the article did not require the jury to be discharged and the other grounds did not warrant overturning the conviction.
The appeal court affirmed the conviction. The judgment does not record a new sentence or other order beyond that decision.