Martin Aylmer’s sentence increased for criminal organisation offence

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

Martin Aylmer was re-sentenced at the Court of Appeal to six years in prison, with the final 15 months suspended, after the Director of Public Prosecutions successfully sought a review of his original sentence as unduly lenient. The proceedings were reported on 10 March 2020.

Aylmer pleaded guilty to participating in, or contributing to, activity intending to facilitate a serious offence by a criminal organisation or any of its members. The Special Criminal Court had originally sentenced him to three years and nine months in prison, with the final year suspended.

Aylmer bought six prepaid mobile phones before the murder of Michael Barr at the Sunset House pub in Dublin on 25 April 2016. The Special Criminal Court heard that one phone was found beside the burned-out getaway car, and that CCTV showed Aylmer buying it two days before the shooting. He told gardaí he believed the phones would be used for drug trafficking.

At the original sentencing, Mr Justice Tony Hunt said it could not be established that Aylmer knew he was contributing to a murder and there was no evidence that he had moved firearms. The judge said it must have been apparent to him that he was assisting serious criminal activity. Aylmer’s counsel, Caroline Biggs SC, said it had never been suggested that he knew a murder was to be committed.

Giving the appeal judgment, Ms Justice Úna Ní Raifeartaigh said full responsibility for the murder should not be laid at Aylmer’s door, but his assistance to a gang that committed murder was an aggravating factor. She set an eight-year headline sentence, applied a 25% reduction for his guilty plea and suspended the final 15 months to reflect his personal circumstances and the disappointment of an increased sentence. Aylmer undertook to enter a good-behaviour bond for the suspended period.