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'Wouldn’t be out of place in a Tarantino movie': Lunney kidnappers challenge sentences for 'animalistic' torture and abduction

2026-06-30 · Cavan, Cavan · Court of Appeal

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Person profile: Jonathan Dowdall

On 30 June 2026 the Court of Appeal heard submissions from three men who were found guilty in 2021 of kidnapping, false imprisonment and assaulting Kevin Lunney, a director of Quinn Industrial Holdings, at Drumbrade near Ballinagh, County Cavan. The defendants – Alan Harte, Alan O’Brien and Darren Redmond – are now seeking to have the custodial terms imposed on them reduced. The appeal is not over the convictions themselves; those were dismissed in January 2026 when the court rejected all grounds of appeal, including challenges to DNA evidence recovered from a van used by the kidnappers, phone records obtained under warrant and CCTV footage. Harte was sentenced to 30 years, O’Brien to 25 years and Redmond to 18 years, with the final three years suspended in each case. All three men have announced that they will pursue an appeal of their sentences. In the present hearing the Director of Public Prosecutions, represented by Sean Guerin SC, urged the court to maintain the existing sentences on the basis that the evidence against the defendants was solid and had been assessed in its entirety. Defence counsel argued that errors made during the trial judgment could not be corrected through a broader analysis of the case and that the length of the sentences was disproportionate to the conduct. The court considered whether the earlier decisions regarding the admissibility of DNA, phone records and CCTV footage were correct, and whether any procedural mistakes had occurred. The judges noted that the convictions themselves remain unchallenged and that the appeal is limited to the custodial terms imposed. The case remains a significant local matter, as it involves a high‑profile business figure from Cavan who was abducted on his own property and subjected to sustained violence before being abandoned on a country road. The outcome of this appeal will determine whether the three men remain in prison for the full duration of their sentences or receive a reduction.

Source: Courts News Ireland This page is a localnews.ie summary and index entry; the full original report may require a publisher subscription.

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