Gareth Hutch died of multiple gunshot injuries, murder trial told

The Special Criminal Court has heard that Gareth Hutch died of multiple gunshot injuries after he was shot in the carpark of a Dublin city flats complex over two years ago.

Mr Hutch, nephew of Gerry “the Monk” Hutch, suffered four gun shot wounds, two to the back of the neck, one to the lower back and one to the right of the upper chest.

The 36-year-old was fatally injured as he was getting into his car outside Avondale House flats on North Cumberland Street in Dublin on the morning of May 24th, 2016.

A brother and sister as well as another man are on trial accused of murdering Mr Hutch.

Thomas Fox (31) with an address at Rutland Court, Dublin 1, Regina Keogh (41) from Avondale House, Cumberland Street North, Dublin 1 and Jonathan Keogh (32) of Gloucester Place, Dublin 1, have pleaded not guilty to murdering Mr Hutch.

Mr Fox has also denied unlawfully possessing a Makarov 9 mm handgun on May 23th, 2016 at the same place.

Fiona Murphy BL on Thursday read the post mortem report to the court. Professor Marie Cassidy, the Chief State Pathologist, carried out the post mortem on Mr Hutch's body on May 24th, after he had been shot a number of times by two gunmen at 9.55am that morning.

In her statement, Prof Cassidy said Mr Hutch died as a result of multiple gunshot injuries. She said he suffered four gun shot injuries, two to the back of the neck, one to the lower back and one to the right of the upper chest.

Three of the bullets had travelled in a similar direction from the back to the front of his body. The fourth bullet had travelled across the deceased’s chest cavity and lodged in his left arm. The court heard that all bullets were recovered.

Mr Hutch had suffered injuries to his neck, ribs, heart and brain, she said.

Attempts were made to resuscitate Mr Hutch but he had lost in excess of 2.5 litres of blood, said Prof Cassidy. He was not intoxicated by alcohol or drugs at the time of his death.

Followed the two attackers

Earlier, the court heard evidence from Garda Jack Costigan and Garda Amy Collins, who were the first officers on the scene. Garda Costigan told prosecution counsel Paul Burns SC that he arrived at Avondale House at 10am on May 24th where large crowds had gathered in the carpark.

Garda Costigan said Ross Hutch approached him in an "erratic manner" and asked him what had taken him so long to get there. The court heard previously that the slain man's cousin, Ross Hutch, arrived on the scene after the alleged murder, saw Gareth on the ground and followed the two attackers for a while before turning back.

Garda Costigan testified that he saw a brown-handled handgun in the middle of the carpark with a silver silencer attached to it. A second gun was lying between a white van and a black BMW car, he added.

Garda Collins gave evidence that the driver’s door of the black BMW was “slightly open” and the engine was running. Using latex gloves, Garda Collins said she lent into the car and switched off the engine.

The statement of Dr Sinead McArdle, a consultant in emergency medicine at the Mater Hospital, was read into the record by the prosecution. The court heard Dr McArdle pronounced Mr Hutch dead at 10.38am.

A statement by John Hutch, father of the deceased, was also read into evidence in which he said he identified his son's body to Detective Garda Fergal O'Flaherty at 12.53pm on May 24th. The court also heard the chaplain of the Mater hospital said a prayer over Mr Hutch's body which was done at the request of his family.

‘Panicked’

On Thursday afternoon a witness told the trial Jonathan Keogh looked “panicked” as he ran up a street on the morning Gareth Hutch was shot dead.

Colette Geoghegan told prosecuting counsel Paul Burns SC that she lived in a flat on North Richmond Street. Ms Geoghegan agreed with counsel that she knew Jonathan Keogh through her friend. “He would drop over (to her) quite often,” she said.

Ms Geoghegan said she left her house at 9.50am with her partner, Maurice Farrell, on the morning of May 24th. They were walking down Summerhill to the National Youth Project on Rutland Street. She told the court that her partner said something to her, she looked over and saw Jonathan Keogh. “He was running fast enough, he seemed panicked,” she said. The accused could have been wearing dark shorts, she said.

When Ms Geoghegan got to the club, she heard there had been a shooting. She listened to the news when she returned home and went to see her friend, she said. Later that day, this friend produced an envelope with €50 notes in it. “There was quite a large amount of 50 pound notes,” she said.

The witness said she minded her friend’s children that night, it was her first time to do it. The next day her friend called her from a number she did not recognise.

Maurice Farrell gave evidence and said his partner Colette Geoghegan had a friend who was Mr Keogh’s partner at the time and he would see the accused “coming and going” in the area.

Mr Farrell said he and Colette left North Richmond Street at 9.50am on May 24th to go to the National Youth Project on Rutland Street. As they were coming down Summerhill, they stopped at pedestrian traffic lights and he saw Mr Keogh “running up” Rutland Street.

The court previously saw footage of Gareth Hutch walking towards his black car in Avondale House flats at 9.53am. As he opened the front door of his vehicle, two men approached him “very quickly” and shot him.

Jim Holmes told the court he was walking in the direction of Gardiner Street at 9.50am on that morning when he saw two men running in the center of the road. One of the men was wearing a balaclava which looked “suspicious” so he rang 999.

‘Premeditated’

At the opening of the trial, Mr Burns told the court that the killing of Mr Hutch was not a spontaneous or spur of the moment act but a “brutal and callous murder”. “It was premeditated and a significant amount of planning had gone into it,” counsel said.

The prosecution say the three co-accused each had their own part to play in bringing about the death of Mr Hutch. It is the prosecution case that Mr Keogh was one of the two gunmen, together with another man, who directed the attack which killed Mr Hutch. Both he and Mr Fox were “instrumental” in the planning and carrying out of the attack, the State says.

The prosecution contend that the evidence of Mary McDonnell, who had a flat at Avondale House, is “important” in this trial, as the three accused had gathered in her home in the hours before the murder. Her kitchen window had a view into Mr Hutch’s flat.

It is the prosecution’s case that five vehicles were involved in this shooting, and DNA and fingerprint evidence link Mr Keogh and Mr Fox to these vehicles.

The trial continues before Mr Justice Tony Hunt, presiding, sitting with Judge Patricia Ryan and Judge Michael Walsh.