Courts

Man who helped criminal organisation try to murder Dublin man is jailed for 7½ years

Judge noted victim Noel Boylan was very lucky to be alive after gunman was seen on CCTV footage ‘racking and re-racking’ his gun

Pic shows: Court 13 at the CCJ in Dublin where the trial of Graham Dwyer who has pleaded NOT guilty to the murder Elaine O'Hara has opened, Thursday 22-01-2015. Pic: Collins Courts.

Derek Byrne (40), with an address in Swords, Dublin, was sentenced at the Central Criminal Court on Monday. Photograph: Collins Courts

Alison O’Riordan
Mon Dec 18 2023 - 17:28

A drug addict with “a very serious criminal record” who helped a criminal organisation try to murder a Dublin man, who was forced to seek shelter in a Lidl supermarket as terrified shoppers including children ran for cover during a daylight shooting, has been jailed for 7½ by the Central Criminal Court.

Delivering sentence on Monday, Mr Justice Paul McDermott said the shooting only became an attempted murder when the gunman’s weapon jammed. He said the defendant Derek Byrne, who later admitted purchasing the car used by the gunman on behalf of an organised crime gang, didn’t care who was killed or who was jeopardised in the process.

The judge noted that victim Noel Boylan, who received a gunshot wound to the stomach, was very lucky to be alive after the gunman was seen on CCTV footage “racking and re-racking” his gun.

The sentence hearing was told the shooting victim had run to seek shelter in the Lidl supermarket after a hooded gunman carried out a daylight attack, the aftermath of which was captured by a Virgin Media TV crew filming the Inside the K TV series on gardaí.

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CCTV footage had captured the gunman attempting to fire into the supermarket.

Derek Byrne (40), with an address at Drynam Green, Drynam Hall in Swords, Dublin, was originally charged with attempting to murder Noel Boylan at Blakestown Way, Mulhudddart, Dublin 15 on June 1st, 2019.

Just three months earlier, an organised gang had tried to murder the victim’s son Lee Boylan on the same road. Lee Boylan was shot three times at close range, with his life saved due to a “fortuitous fluke” when his gunshot wounds formed an abnormal connection between an artery and a vein that stopped him from bleeding out.

During a pretrial hearing on October 23rd this year, Byrne pleaded guilty to intentionally facilitating the commission of a serious offence by a criminal organisation, namely the attempted murder of Noel Boylan, between May 27th and June 1st, 2019, both dates inclusive, with knowledge of the existence of the said criminal organisation.

Before delivering sentence on Monday, the judge said Mr Boylan had been shot by a hooded gunman while he was out walking his dog. He said the shooter got out of the passenger seat of a Toyota Avensis car and had fired a single shot into his victim.

The judge said the gunman tried to discharge further shots into the supermarket and was seen on CCTV footage “racking and re-racking” the gun.

He said the victim, who chose not to co-operate in any way with the investigation, received a gunshot wound to the stomach.

The shooter, he continued, finally ran away from the scene and fled into the Toyota vehicle, which was tracked on CCTV footage. It was later burned out in Swords.

Enquiries established that the car was purchased on May 27th, 2019 after being advertised on DoneDeal and was registered to a false name. Byrne, the judge said, had been recognised on CCTV footage as the purchaser of the Toyota vehicle.

The judge said Byrne was arrested with another man for a different offence – the unlawful possession of a firearm – during a search of his home on December 3rd, 2019. Tracksuit bottoms seized during the search matched clothing worn by the person who had purchased the Toyota car “invoked in the shooting of Mr Boylan”, he said.

Byrne has 78 previous convictions, which are mostly for road traffic-related matters. Other offences included dangerous driving, criminal damage and possession of drugs for sale or supply.

Byrne’s most serious offence to date is for unlawful possession of a semi-automatic 9mm pistol and ammunition at Rathowen, Co Westmeath on December 3rd, 2019. He was convicted in November 2021 and received a 7½ sentence from Dublin Circuit Criminal Court with the last 18 months suspended.

Byrne, who has a work history in construction, is currently serving that sentence and has been in prison since December 3rd, 2019.

The judge said on Monday that the facilitation offence predated the firearm offence. A probation report indicated Byrne got involved in this matter due to a payment of a drug debt and was at moderate risk of reoffending, he added.

He said the defendant had very little knowledge of the victim, who was very lucky to be alive. He said it was clear Byrne has a drug abuse history going back to his late teens and had struggled to maintain being drug free. He said the defendant was not interested in engaging with addiction services at present.

Mr Justice McDermott said the essential element of the facilitation offence was procuring a vehicle to convey a gunman to the scene.

Having regard to the gravity of the offence, the judge said the offending was at the higher end of seriousness and set a headline sentence of 11 years for Byrne.

In mitigation, the court took into account Byrne’s guilty plea and his remorse but said the defendant was found to have accepted minimum responsibility for what happened that day.

Byrne was sentenced to eight years and six months in prison with the final 12 months suspended for a period of three years on condition he engage with probation services and attend all his appointments. The sentence imposed by the court is to take effect from Monday.

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