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Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
National
Paul Healy

Phone cell sites in four counties examined in Regency shooting probe as Hutch trial hears of huge investigation scope

The massive scope of the Regency Hotel murder investigation has again been laid bare before the trial of Gerry Hutch.

On Tuesday the trial was shown a total of 83 separate maps - each depicting cell site locations that were examined by gardai in this case - across counties Dublin, Louth, Monaghan and Donegal.

The cell sites were used by gardai to obtain and examine phone records - including calls, texts and location data in the case - after seizing phones from the likes of Jonathan Dowdall, his father Patrick, Patsy Hutch, and co-accused man Paul Murphy.

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Details of this analysis are set to be heard on Thursday when Sarah Skeed, a phone analysis expert, will take the witness stand.

Today, however the trial heard details of each and every cell site phone tower that was of interest in this murder trial - revealing locations around key areas - such as around the Regency Hotel on the Swords Road in Dublin, where the murder took place.

Gerry Hutch has denied murdering Kinahan cartel associate David Byrne (34) in the Regency Hotel on February 5, 2016.

Co-accused men Jason Bonney and Paul Murphy meanwhile deny separate charges of facilitating that murder by providing vehicles that aided the hit-team in escaping that day.

Today, Conor O’Callaghan, an engineer with Three Ireland Hutchison Limited was called to the witness stand and led the court through each map of the various cell sites.

Mr O’Callaghan first confirmed that he had dealt with all garda requests for data information in the case - and that Three then processed all data that was retained from each phone number requested by investigators.

In particular gardai were interested in records in relation to co-accused men Paul Murphy and Jason Bonney - as well as Jonathan Dowdall and others being investigated in relation to the murder.

Each cell site location was read out before the court today which was also shown separate maps of each.


The court also heard that some of the cell site locations were at the same address - as in highly populated areas, there would be more than one cell tower in the same location.

While details were not given today of why gardai sought phone data from these specific locations - many of them correlate with areas and alleged events already heard before the non-jury trial.

Aside from the Regency Hotel itself, data was sought from a cell site at the Catholic Institute for the Deaf in Drumcondra - which is not far from the hotel and other key areas of interest in the case.

The location is also quite close to the St Vincents GAA Club, where the State alleges Paul Murphy and Jason Bonney were located and picked up the hit-team following the shooting in the Regency Hotel.

Jonathan Dowdall (file photo) (Collins)



Several cell sites were also looked into in the Co Monaghan, Louth and Donegal areas - where the prosecution alleges State witness Jonathan Dowdall and accused man Gerry Hutch traveled through on dates in January, February and March of 2016.

Phone data was also sought from cell sites in Whitehall and at Collinstown in Dublin - which the court today heard would encompass the Collins Avenue area of Whitehall.

That information came to light when Brendan Grehan SC Defending for Hutch asked Mr O’Callaghan what cell site would cover that area.

The court has already heard Jonathan Dowdall allege that he met with Gerry Hutch at a park in that area of Whitehall on either the Sunday or the Monday following the Regency Hotel shooting - and claimed the accused confessed to him.

The court is likely to hear further details on Thursday about the triangulation of cell site analysis to determine the location of Jonathan Dowdall’s phone at the time he claims this event occurred.

Today, the court heard of two other cell sites of interest at Ashtown Gate on the Navan Road and at Cabra Garda Station.

Dowdall lived at an address on the Navan Road, and the court has already heard details of how his phone pinged off one of the phone towers in that area at 11:58am on February 8, 2016.

Dowdall had told gardai that he remembers meeting Hutch in Whitehall at around that time - but the phone analysis showed he was in the Navan Road area.

However the analysis did show that he was in the Whitehall area the day before - on February 7 at around 3:16 pm- at Collins Avenue.

Today, the court also heard about cell sites across north Dublin.

The trial has already heard details of how gardai from the secretive National Surveillance Unit (NSU) were monitoring the movements of IRA man Shane Rowan from Donegal down to the Malahide Industrial Estate on March 9, 2016.

There, he was observed meeting with Patsy Hutch, a brother of the accused, and was subsequently arrested later that evening in the Slane area of Co Meath - with three Ak-47 rifles discovered in the boot of his car.

Those rifles were later determined by ballistics experts to be the same weapons used in the Regency Hotel attack.

Key to the State’s case is the mention of “three yokes” on the recorded tape of Jonathan Dowdall and Gerry Hutch that was made as they travelled from Dublin up north.



The prosecution allege the yokes are the Ak47s, and in the tapes Hutch is heard talking about having them moved - and is alleged to even “confess” to a man they met up north that it was them at the Regency.

The court also heard today of a cell site at Emyvale in Monaghan - the same area that an NSU garda had previously claimed he was aware of Shane Rowan stopping at a ‘Top’ garage before he travelled to Dublin.

There are also several cell sites in the Swords area - not far from the Regency - as well as sites in Portmarnock, where accused man Jason Bonney lives, and from where he is alleged to have left his home on February 5, 2016 in a BMW later supplied to help the hit-team escape.

Further data was also sought from Donaghmede Shopping Centre - where the court heard Bonney was seen on February 20, 2016.

It is the same location and date in which the BMW was seized from Mr Bonney.

Cell sites were also examined within the north inner city -such as at the IFSC in Dublin, close to where the likes of Patsy Hutch lives in Champions Avenue.

A cell site at the US Ambassador's residence in Dublin's Phoenix Park, which encompasses a large area of the city, was also examined.

Several cell sites were also looked at in the Ardee area of Co Louth - an area that the court previously heard members of the Garda NSU observed Dowdall driving through in his Land Cruiser - with Hutch allegedly in the passenger seat.

On Thursday the court will hear from Ms Skeed on her expert analysis of the phone data in the case in detail.

She is set to be the last witness for the prosecution.

Next week the trial is set to conclude with final arguments from both the Defence and the Prosecution.

The judges will then retire to deliberate and come to a judgment which is likely to take a number of months.

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