Protected witness identifies Jonathan Keogh in Gareth Hutch murder trial

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

A protected witness identified Jonathan Keogh from CCTV footage during the Gareth Hutch murder trial at the Special Criminal Court. The proceedings were reported on 13 June 2018.

Jonathan Keogh, Thomas Fox and Regina Keogh have pleaded not guilty to murdering Gareth Hutch. Fox has also denied unlawfully possessing a Makarov 9mm handgun at Avondale House on 23 May 2016.

Hutch, 36, was shot dead as he was getting into his car outside Avondale House flats on North Cumberland Street in Dublin on 24 May 2016. He died from four gunshot injuries.

The witness identified Keogh and another man in CCTV footage near the flats at 6.46am on the morning of the shooting. She also identified them leaving her flat at 9.53am and coming down the stairwell, saying they were running out with guns.

Under cross-examination, Keogh’s counsel, Sean Guerin SC, suggested that gardaí had tried to make the witness feel unsafe in her home using Hutch’s murder. She said this made her uncomfortable. She agreed that gardaí had told her she could not return home because it was unsafe, while she had repeatedly said she felt safe there and wanted to return.

The witness had been charged with withholding information, but the charge was withdrawn on 15 February 2017 and she was granted immunity in May 2018. The trial was continuing before Mr Justice Tony Hunt, sitting with Judge Patricia Ryan and Judge Michael Walsh.