Michael Crotty jailed for reckless facilitation of a serious offence

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

Michael Crotty was jailed for two years at the Special Criminal Court after admitting that he was reckless as to whether phone credit he bought would be used by the Kinahan criminal organisation to commit a serious offence. The proceedings were reported on 15 May 2024.

Crotty, of Cashel, Co Tipperary, had pleaded not guilty to facilitating the murder of Noel Kirwan and went to trial in January 2024. In February, he pleaded guilty to participating in or contributing to activity, with knowledge of a criminal organisation, intending to facilitate or being reckless as to whether it could facilitate a serious offence by the organisation or its members. The charge related to the period from 20 October to 22 December 2016.

The court heard that Crotty bought a €20 top-up for Sean McGovern, who had previously been described in court as a leading Kinahan figure. The phone credited with the payment was used to coordinate Kirwan’s murder on 22 December 2016. Kirwan had no involvement in criminality and was targeted because the cartel mistakenly believed he was linked to the Hutch gang.

Detective Sergeant Sean Cosgrove said Crotty and the recipient passed the credit using unregistered numbers while using their ordinary phones for other communications around the same time. Presiding judge Ms Justice Caroline Biggs said the inference was that both knew the purpose was unlawful. Crotty’s counsel, Padraig Dwyer SC, said Crotty had never intended the credit to be used to endanger anyone.

Ms Justice Biggs accepted there was no evidence Crotty knew the credit would be used in a murder, but treated its use in the killing as an aggravating feature. She set a six-year headline sentence and reduced it to two years, taking account of mitigation including his guilty plea and lack of previous convictions.