Ex-Sinn Fein councillor Jonathan Dowdall begins giving evidence in Regency Hotel murder trial

Former Sinn Fein councillor Jonathan Dowdall has claimed that Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch told him that he and an alleged Dublin criminal shot David Byrne dead at the Regency hotel.

Giving evidence at the Special Criminal Court in Dublin, Mr Dowdall said Mr Hutch told him he was involved in the Regency shooting.

Mr Dowdall said he was asked to meet Mr Hutch in a park in Dublin days after the attack.

Mr Hutch is on trial over the murder of Mr Byrne, who was shot dead at the Regency Hotel in February 2016 in one of the first deadly attacks of the Hutch-Kinahan gangland feud.

Mr Hutch, from the Paddocks, Clontarf, has denied the charge of murder.

Mr Dowdall began his evidence against Mr Hutch by outlining his connections to the Hutch family.

He said on the eve of the Regency shooting, Mr Dowdall's father collected a key card to a room that was used by one of the gunmen. He told the court the key card was handed to Mr Hutch.

Mr Dowdall said he first learned of the Regency attack on the radio and had also been contacted by his wife about it.

Days later, he was asked to meet Mr Hutch at a park in Whitehall in Dublin.

"I arrived and Gerard Hutch was there and he was on his own. He asked if I spoke to Patsy (his brother) and I said no," Mr Dowdall said.

He claimed that Mr Hutch asked about a photograph of two men running from the Regency Hotel that appeared in the Sunday World.

Mr Dowdall said he saw the image and that he recognised one of the men.

"He was in a panic. He wasn't like any other time I seen him," Mr Dowdall added.

Mr Dowdall said he was asked to contact dissident republicans in Northern Ireland to help resolve the feud with the Kinahans, but he had said it would be a "waste of time".

"He said it was him and Mago Gately who were at the hotel and had shot David Byrne. He was upset and saying how he was not happy about shooting that young lad David Byrne dead," Mr Dowdall told the court.

Mr Dowdall also said that Mr Hutch was "very agitated" when he met him in the days after the murder.

"He was not himself and he seemed to genuinely know that sh*t was hitting the fan," Mr Dowdall told the court.

"He was upset over killing that lad, David. He was paranoid of people watching him in the park. He asked to walk and then would stop.

"He said there was going to a be lot of innocent people killed, family and friends. People were knocking on family members' doors and he needed to get someone to try and sort out everything out.

"I was asked to speak to someone and step in. I told him it was a waste of time.

"There wasn't much more. I just wanted out of the park."

Mr Dowdall said he was worried over the booking of the hotel room, saying he wish he hadn't been told details about the Regency murder.

"He (Hutch) had a black cap and brown jacket on. He was paranoid about people watching him. There was a man walking in the park and he stopped and looked at Gerard and Gerard thought he was a cop," Mr Dowdall added.

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