Gardaí pursuing George Nkencho were informed he had mental health issues minutes before he was fatally shot by armed officers, an inquest was told on Thursday.
An update on a Garda communications system for emergency calls, which could be accessed by all members of An Garda Síochána attending the scene, was posted 10 minutes before the shooting. It relayed information received by the Garda control centre via radio broadcast.
“That fella is known to the guards. Severe mental health issues,” was the radio message regarding Mr Nkencho, who was mobile and carrying a knife at the time. It was attributed to an unidentified member of An Garda Síochána.
Members of the Garda Armed Support Unit (ASU), who were responsible for shooting dead Mr Nkencho outside his family home in Manorfields Drive, Clonee, Co Dublin, also made two attempts to subdue the 27-year-old with a taser, according to Garda Desmond Mulvihill.
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Garda Mulvihill told the Dublin District Coroner’s Court he did not know which of the two ASU members tasered or shot Mr Nkencho, despite witnessing the incident from a footpath near the house. He said a garden wall and pillar had partially obstructed his view, and he was in shock when shots were fired.
In a statement he gave in April 2022, Garda Mulvihill said he also did not recognise the voice of the person on the radio broadcast that alerted about Mr Nkencho’s mental health issues.
Mr Nkencho was known to Garda Mulvihill, though he did not immediately recognise him on the day and he did not know his name. He said he had dealt with him in past incidents related to his mental health.
At some point during the confrontation at Manorfields Drive, Garda Mulvihill realised the address was Mr Nkencho’s family home. He said he believed he tried to alert colleagues by shouting, but it was “a very volatile situation” and “could have been easily missed”.
Garda Mulvihill said that, before shots were fired, the front door of the house opened and two females and one male appeared. He did not hear anything they may have attempted to communicate from the doorway.
Gardaí immediately instructed the individuals to go back inside and shut the door, which they did. At this point, Garda Mulvihill said the suspect was swinging the knife violently at Garda ASU members.
Mr Nkencho was temporarily knocked to the ground by the taser, but when he got up “he became even more angry and aggressive, and swung his knife at both armed Gardaí, this time higher and approximately at head height”, Garda Mulvihill said.
Garda Mulvihill had been working overtime in a patrol car on the day. He responded to reports of an armed individual at Hartstown Shopping Centre at about 12.15pm.
As he was travelling alone, Garda Mulvihill was advised not to approach Mr Nkencho, who was carrying a deadly weapon. Driving alongside an unmarked patrol car containing two other members of An Garda Síochána, he trailed Mr Nkencho as he walked back towards Manorfields Drive.
Eventually, the gardaí parked their cars to follow Mr Nkencho on foot, maintaining distance. They engaged him verbally, repeatedly instructing him to put down the knife, which he kept in his pocket for a portion of the walk.
Garda Kenneth Kennedy, now retired, was dealing with armed units attending the scene.
“There was very little assessment done because there was very little information,” he said.
Garda Kennedy had access to the Computer-Aided Dispatch system for the incident, which had been updated to note that the “male has mental health issues”. However, he did not see this line of information and did not communicate it directly to the ASU. Armed gardaí could also access the dispatch system, so may have seen it themselves.
Colleagues of Garda Kennedy’s from the former Garda control centre at Harcourt Square also gave evidence at the inquest.
Inspector Gerard Doherty was asked if the scene was “crying out for an intermediary or negotiator”. He said “time was not allowing for that” and it is usually a measure for a “hostage, barricade or suicide incident”.
The inquest continues on Friday.
