Gerard Hutch found not guilty of Dublin hotel murder

Gerard "The Monk" Hutch had denied being involved in the Regency Hotel murder

Gerard Hutch has been found not guilty of the murder of David Byrne.

Mr Byrne, 33, was shot dead at a boxing weigh-in event at Dublin's Regency Hotel in February 2016. The killing was part of the Hutch-Kinahan gang feud.

Two other men were tried alongside Mr Hutch - both were found guilty of helping facilitate the murder.

The non-jury trial at the Special Criminal Court in Dublin concluded in January after hearing 52 days of evidence.

The judgements were delivered by the three-judge panel of Ms Justice Tara Burns and judges Sarah Berkeley and Grainne Malone.

Mr Hutch, 60, from the Paddocks, Clontarf, had denied the charge.

Ms Justice Burns said the court was satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that Gerard Hutch was in control of the guns used in the shooting.

But she added that did not mean he was involved in the murder, although the court accepted the Hutch family was responsible.

The guns were later recovered by Irish police from a dissident republican.

Jonathan Dowdall is a former Sinn Féin councillor

Former Sinn Féin councillor Jonathan Dowdall, who is serving a four-year sentence for facilitating the murder of David Byrne, became a key state witness during the murder trial.

Ms Justice Burns said Dowdall was acting out of self interest, adding there were questions about his relationship with the truth.

She said in secret Garda (Irish police) recordings, Mr Hutch made no admission to Dowdall that he was involved in the murder and was one of the killers.

The judge said the audio established that Mr Hutch was out of the country in the immediate aftermath of the shooting.

She said there was evidence that his brother Patsy planned the attack and Gerard Hutch came in to clean the mess.

The prosecution claimed that Gerard Hutch was one of two gunmen at the hotel

Mr Hutch's legal team strongly challenged Dowdall's credibility during the 13-week trial saying he was a proven liar and had admitted perjury.

They pointed to contradictions between his sworn evidence and what he had said in Garda (Irish police) secretly recorded conversations between himself and Gerard Hutch.

The Hutch legal team also highlighted contradictions between his evidence and what he had told detectives in his Garda interviews in the presence of his solicitor.

The former Sinn Féin councillor explained the inconsistencies telling the court that he was on tablets for depression at the time and was in fear for his life.

He admitted to telling "lies of necessity."

Paul Murphy, 61, of Cherry Avenue, Swords, and Jason Bonney, 52, of Drumnigh Wood in Portmarnock, denied helping the gang facilitate the murder.

The court found Murphy guilty beyond reasonable doubt of transporting a member of the gang in his taxi.

Bonney was also found guilty of helping the killers by transporting a member of the gang to and from the murder scene.