A man accused of being part of a six vehicle convoy involved in the Regency attack told gardai he bought his car off Eddie Hutch.
Paul Murphy (61) of Cherry Avenue in Swords Co Dublin, has pleaded not guilty to participating in or contributing to activity that could facilitate the commission of a serious offence — namely the murder of David Byrne — by a criminal organisation by providing access to individual motor vehicles on February 5, 2016.
Murphy is on trial alongside fellow-accused man Paul Bonney - and Gerry ‘The Monk’ Hutch, who is charged with the murder of David Byrne (33) at Dublin’s Regency Hotel on that date.
READ MORE: Gerry 'The Monk' Hutch trial hears use of a tracker device would have been 'illegal'
Today, on the 11th day of the Special Criminal Court trial, the court has been hearing for the first time evidence against Mr Murphy - who is accused of supplying logistical support to the crime group on the day by being part of a six-vehicle convoy involved in the murder.
The court this morning heard that Mr Murphy told gardai that he believed his vehicle may have been “cloned” - as he told them he had no involvement in the incident.
Appearing before Ms Justice Tara Burns, Judges Sarah Berkeley and Grainne Malone, now retired Detective Garda Alan Crummey gave evidence about numerous statements he took from Mr Murphy.
Det Garda Crummey, who was attached to the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation, told the court that he first met a man named Paul Brady and took a statement from him in relation to a taxi - a Toyota Avensis with a 07D registration.
Mr Brady told the garda that the vehicle belonged to Paul Murphy - who he had leased the taxi plate to.
Det Garda Crummey said he then met with Mr Murphy on February 22, 2016 at his home in Swords, where he said he took a statement from him. The statement was then read to the court.
Murphy said he had been living at the home with his wife for 15 years, and was a taxi driver for the past 20 years - first with Exchequer Taxis in Finglas before he opened his own place, but that “didn’t take off.”
He said he then rented a plate off Paul Brady, who he had previously rented a plate off in the past, he said.
The plate - numbered 20042, he said he had ever since - and was attached to a gold-green Toyota Avensis.
Mr Murphy said that the vehicle was “seized off me the other night” by gardai.
For the past three years he said he’d been working with Exchequer Taxis opposite the Ilac Centre in Dublin, and that he’d rented a radio off them.
Murphy said he normally worked the north side of the city, and said that he remembered that on February 5, 2016, he went to work at around 10, or half 10 in the morning and “mooched around town.”
He said he recalled having seven or eight jobs that day, which he said were all small jobs around Sherriff Street and back.
He said he couldn’t remember specific jobs but it was more than likely that there were receipts from them still in the car.
The receipts he said would show the date, time and cost as well as how long a journey was, and he said, were printed off automatically - with most people not taking them.
Mr Murphy said he could remember that he got a job in the Gardiner Street area on February 5, going to Fairview with a man and a woman who had no luggage at around 1pm.
He also said he went via Amiens Street towards the North Strand on a 10 minute journey that cost seven euro and 20 cent - and that the man didn’t leave a tip.
Murphy said he then pulled into a garage, he thought maybe a Maxoll, at 10 minutes or 20 minutes past one and got a coffee and a ham sandwich.
He ate the sandwich outside the Beachcomber pub, he said, which he parked up at and pointed in the direction of town.
He then read the paper, he said.
After that he said he couldn’t remember if he fuelled up that day, but he next went via Fairview, turning right into Ballybough and right up the North Circular Road, he said.
Mr Murphy said he heard about the “shooting at the Regency” he thought on the three o’clock news when he was on the North Circular Road.
He then said he “went up nosing” and the traffic was “mental” so he drove all the way down the bus lane.
At the Regency he said he could see “people all over the place” and ambulances and police.
He said he went up the bus lane and went home - and told gardai that he doesn’t have any involvement in the Regency attack.
Mr Murphy said he knew ‘Neddie’ Eddie Hutch - a since murdered brother of the accused Gerry Hutch.
He said he knew Eddie Hutch to have a chat to and “say hello” but he “wouldn’t have been a friend.”
He said he knew Eddie Hutch through the taxi business.
In relation to the 07 Avensis taxi, he said he was the “only person driving it” on February 5, 2016.
“I am the only one who drives the car,” he said, adding that his wife is down as a domestic driver on it and Paul Brady is also covered to drive it.
He said he took the car into the garage on February 8 for an oil change and had to get the gear box replaced.
Then on March 3, Garda Crummey said he had cause to meet with Mr Murphy again this time at the Croke Park Hotel in Dublin.
On that date, the court heard Murphy made an additional statement - and was cautioned and was told he was not obliged to say anything.
In that statement Mr Murphy said that he wanted to say “I think my Avensis taxi could have been cloned.”
He said the reason he was saying that is he had two fines - one for speeding and one for littering - adding “I never litter.”
He said he was “not inclined to speed” but said it was “possible it could’ve been me but I don’t think so.”
He said he hadn’t paid the fines and had intended to take the matters to court.
Asked if he had any information in relation to the shooting of David Byrne in the Regency he said “no is the answer.”
The Garda again met with Murphy at the same place on March 9 and he was cautioned, and told he had the right to have a solicitor present.
He was shown a photocopy of a receipt from his taxi dated February 5, 2016 - and there were 11 fares in total that started at 10:42am and finished at 4:22pm.
Mr Murphy said he couldn’t recall all of the journeys he had taken that day.
The Garda then asked Murphy about two phones which were found in the seized car - one a Nokia 8850 which Mr Murphy said he purchased from China on the internet and he thought he used only once.
The other phone - a “little one like a calculator” he bought from an Applewood garage in Swords.
He said that phone was “sh*ite” and he wouldn’t have used it for more than a day or so.
On Monday, March 30, 2016, Murphy was arrested at the Travel Lodge Hotel - at that time over the murder of David Byrne with a firearm at the Regency Hotel.
During his detention in Ballymun Garda Station he was interviewed - accompanied by a solicitor.
Detective Garda Shane Duffy gave evidence of one of those interviews - with the interview then being read out by Prosecuting Counsel Sean Gillane.
During the court of that interview the court heard how Mr Murphy told gardai that he had purchased his taxi from Eddie Hutch - and was paying him back in installments.
He said Neddie Hutch “done a deal for me” on the car and that it was a private sale - and he was paying him back with E175 euro payments every week.
In a year the taxi would be paid for in full he said, and he would meet with Eddie Hutch to pay him.
The trial continues this afternoon.
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