Getaway driver set himself alight while trying to burn out car used in murder

Gareth Brophy, aged 25, of Reuben Walk, Dublin 8, pleaded guilty to facilitating the murder of David Douglas at the Special Criminal Court. Mr Douglas, 55, was shot six times in Shoestown on Bridgefoot Street, Dublin 8, on 1 July 2016. Evidence showed Brophy drove the getaway Mercedes, which he subsequently attempted to set alight near Tandy Court Apartments. While burning the vehicle, his trousers caught fire before he extinguished the flames and fled to a waiting Suzuki Swift. CCTV analysis of 1,500 hours of footage, DNA evidence from the Suzuki's passenger area, and a palm print from the vehicle door linked Brophy to the crime. The court heard his involvement was assessed as more serious than that of Nathan Foley, who received a six-year sentence for the same offence. Brophy was arrested in November 2018. Sentencing was scheduled for 17 February.