Kevin Lunney abduction: Recovered car 'burned' in garda custody

Kevin Lunney was beaten and tortured by three men on 17 September last year

A vehicle recovered in the investigation into the alleged abduction of Quinn Industrial Holdings director Kevin Lunney was "burned" while in Irish police custody.

Dublin's Special Criminal Court has heard the vehicle was burned "apparently accidentally".

Mr Lunney was beaten and tortured by three men on 17 September last year.

Four people have been charged with false imprisonment and assault causing serious harm.

Lawyers for one of the accused told a non-jury court on Wednesday that they did not know what happened to the vehicle, but that they would be "grateful" if gardaí (Irish police) and the director of public prosecutions could "tell us all they know".

A trial date of 11 January 2021 has been fixed for the four accused - Luke O'Reilly, 66, from Mullahoran Lower in Kilcogy, County Cavan; 25-year-old Darren Redmond, from Caledon Road in Dublin's East Wall area; Alan O'Brien, 39, of Shelmalier Road, East Wall; and a forth accused who cannot be named for legal reasons.

A lawyer for the fourth accused told the court that he did not have full details on what happened to the burned vehicle and "the easiest thing to do would be for the state to tell us all they know".

'Looking into it'

One of the judges put it to prosecutors that the matter seemed to be "of concern".

Counsel for the director of public prosecutions replied that the state was "looking into it".

"You'll have to do more than look into it," the judge replied.

Mr O'Brien was remanded in custody to appear before the court again on 6 July. The fourth accused was also remanded in custody.

Mr O'Reilly and Mr Redmond were granted bail in April, despite police objections.