TRAIL

Jury shown footage of moment when a garda was shot dead

The jury in a capital murder trial has been shown footage of the moment when a garda was shot dead in the car park of a credit union during an armed robbery.  

Detective Garda Gareth Kenna said the footage shows a vehicle blocking the exit to the credit union car park while four men emerge. One of them, he said, is carrying what seems to be a shotgun and, "appears to recoil and appears almost to hit the ground." 

It is the prosecution's case that Detective Sergeant Adrian Donohoe died from a single shotgun blast. Aaron Brady (28) from New Road, Crossmaglen, Co Armagh has pleaded not (NOT) guilty to the capital murder of Det Gda. 

Adrian Donohoe who was then a member of An Garda Siochana on active duty on January 25, 2013, at Lordship Credit Union, Bellurgan, Co Louth. Mr Brady has also pleaded not (NOT) guilty to a charge of robbing approximately e7,000 in cash and assorted cheques on the same date and at the same location.

Det Gda Kenna told prosecuting counsel Lorcan Staines SC that he compiled CCTV footage for the investigation into Det Gda Donohoe's death. Showing the jury footage from the Lordship Credit Union on January 25, 2013, he described two cars, a Nissan Qashqai and an unmarked garda patrol car, entering the car park at 9.25pm.  

A man came out of the credit union and went to a Mazda car while the Nissan and the garda car moved towards the exit. He said: "You can see a vehicle has arrived on the road blocking the car park exit just as the Nissan Qashqai arrived at the car park exit."

As the garda car followed behind, Det Gda Kenna said two people can be seen running towards the garda car while two other people could be seen going to the other cars.

He said: "The first person has what appears to be a shotgun. It is fully extended. This individual appears to recoil and appears almost to hit the ground."

At this point in the evidence defence counsel Michael O'Higgins SC said that the witness was "getting close to editorialising" and Mr Justice Michael White asked Det Gda Kenna to give his evidence objectively and not to give any "comment" or to offer his own views. 

Det Gda Kenna continued that the four people then appeared to leave the car park before the vehicle blocking the exit drove off in the direction of Dundalk. The witness confirmed that the length of time from when the vehicle pulled up to block the exit to when it pulled off was 58 seconds.

The jury was then shown a second view of the same incident from a different CCTV camera and another view from a dashcam in the Mazda. 

The jury also heard from employees of credit unions in Cooley, Omeath, and Carlingford who were working that night. Marie McCarthy told Brendan Grehan SC for the prosecution that she counted the money from the three credit unions and it totaled e27,375. 

She put it in a bag at Cooley Credit Union and gave it to Mary Hanlon who then left with a garda patrol car to go to Lordship Credit Union.

The trial continues in front of Mr Justice Michael White and a jury of eight men and seven women next Tuesday.