Witness received threat against his family ahead of Brady case

Court hears about campaign by garda killer’s associates over testimony

A witness whose videoed statement was recorded and shared by garda killer Aaron Brady was warned he’d be “dealt with” and his family would “get it” if he testified against Brady.

Yesterday, the Special Criminal Court also heard how several witnesses were intimidated by associates of Brady in the lead-up to the capital murder case, with one man told he would “be killed” if he gave evidence.

The 33-year-old is serving a life sentence with a minimum of 40 years for the murder of Det Gda Adrian Donohoe during a credit union robbery in Louth in 2013.

Last week, Brady, from south Armagh, pleaded guilty to recording a videoed witness statement given by Ronan Flynn during the 2020 trial, which was intended to pervert the course of justice.

In Mr Flynn’s statement, he told gardaí that Brady had admitted to the murder of Det Gda Donohoe several times while they were living together in New York.

Excerpts of the videoed statement were filmed by the garda killer from his prison cell and later circulated on social media describing Mr Flynn as a “tout”.

His co-accused, Dean Byrne (30), of Cabra Park, Dublin 7, remains on trial before the non-jury court. He is accused of conspiring with Brady to dissuade a witness, Daniel Cahill, from testifying in order to pervert the course of justice.

Det Insp Mark Phillips gave evidence yesterday about the investigation into the murder and concerns raised by witnesses prior to the trial commencing.

He agreed with Lorcan Staines SC, prosecuting, that he compiled a confidential report in the months before the trial began dealing with 14 witnesses, several of whom had complained about being threatened by associates of Brady.

The court heard that Mr Flynn contacted gardaí in January 2019 and said he was “very concerned for his own safety and that of his family”. The court also heard Mr Flynn’s sister was informed that if “he ever stepped foot back in Ireland again, he would be dealt with”, and that if he gave evidence his family “would get it”.

He also met with Det Insp Phillips in July 2019 to say his family members were “getting hassle in Ireland from associates of Aaron Brady”.

Ultimately, only two of the 14 witnesses mentioned in the report gave evidence in the trial, the court heard.

The confidential report stated that Mr Cahill said he was approached by one of Brady’s friends in New York and asked if he had spoken to authorities.

The court heard that one witness feared for his family’s safety if he testified.

Another man told gardaí he would not give evidence after being approached prior to the trial and warned he would “be killed if he gives evidence”.

In cross-examination, Det Insp Phillips agreed with Padraig Dwyer SC, defending, that by the time the report was compiled in October 2019, Mr Cahill had not expressed intimidation concerns.

The defence counsel said they were not objecting to the hearsay evidence but wanted to outline that there was no suggestion of intimidation in the charge against his client. The trial continues at the Special Criminal Court.