Regency hotel getaway drivers fail in bid to overturn their convictions

The Court of Appeal has upheld convictions against two men who acted as getaway drivers during the fatal 2016 Regency Hotel attack in Dublin. Jason Bonney and Paul Murphy, both based in the greater Dublin area, were found guilty in April 2022 at the Special Criminal Court of facilitating the murder of Kinahan Cartel member David Byrne on 5 February 2016. Mr Justice John Edwards dismissed all grounds of appeal raised by both men. The judge found the evidence presented to the trial court capable of supporting their convictions. Specifically, he rejected arguments that CCTV footage was insufficiently reliable for identifying the vehicles involved in the incident. Murphy's Toyota Avensis taxi and Bonney's black BMW X5 had been identified as part of a six-vehicle convoy that transported gunmen away from St Vincent's GAA club following the shooting. The appellants had contended they lacked knowledge of the Hutch criminal organisation's involvement and that pre-arrest interviews should have been ruled inadmissible. The judge rejected both contentions. The trial court had concluded that the men's participation in this meticulously planned operation was significant and fell within the upper range of offending, given that such coordinated attacks cannot succeed without organised vehicle support. Sentencing occurred in May 2023. Murphy, then aged 61 of Swords, County Dublin, received nine years imprisonment, while Bonney, then aged 52 of Portmarnock, Dublin, was sentenced to eight and a half years, combining to 17 and a half years in total. Both men have signalled their intention to pursue separate appeals against their sentences, meaning the matter is not fully concluded. The outcome represents a significant development in prosecutions arising from the organised crime conflict between rival Dublin-based factions.