GARDA KILLER BRADY IN NEW TRIAL
Murderer charged over ‘plot to pervert course of justice’
The 31-year-old, and alleged accomplice Dean Byrne are charged with conspiring to persuade a key State witness not to testify during his trial for murdering Detective Adrian Donohoe.
Gardai served them with books of evidence yesterday.
Brady, of New Road, Crossmaglen, Co Armagh, had denied capital murder for the fatal shooting of Det Gda Donohoe during robbery at Lordship Credit Union in Co Louth on January 25, 2013.
However, he was handed a life sentence after being found guilty by a Central Criminal Court jury in August 2020. Following a Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation probe, Brady and two others were charged on April 4 with other offences.
He is accused of conspiring with Byrne at Mountjoy Prison to persuade Daniel Cahill, a prosecution witness in his trial, not to give evidence, to pervert the course of public justice, between April 8 and
June 22, 2020. During the trial, which ran from January to August that year, Mr Cahill testified he overheard Brady say he shot a garda.
The killer has a second charge that on a date unknown between February 20 and May 7, 2020, he video-recorded the playing of a video-recorded witness interview between Ronan Flynn and members of An Garda Siochana, thus embarking upon a course to pervert the course of public justice.
The case resumed before Judge Victor Blake at Cloverhill District yesterday.
Brady appeared via video link from Portlaoise Prison, having consented to a solicitor accepting service of the prosecution’s book of evidence on his behalf. State solicitor Michelle Sheeran asked the judge to grant a return for trial order to a sitting of a Special Criminal Court. He agreed to grant the order.
The same trial venue order was made for co-accused Byrne, who also appeared via video link, and there was no application for bail.
Judge Blake told them they would be notified when a date for their appearance in the Special Criminal Court had been set.