An appeal by five men against their convictions for the murder of crime leader Kieran Keane and the attempted murder of Keane's nephew, Owen Treacy, has opened amid tight security at the Court of Criminal Appeal in Dublin.
Desmond Dundon (23), Hyde Road, Limerick; David Stanners (34), Pineview Gardens, Moyross; James McCarthy (27), Delmege Park, Moyross; Christopher Costelloe (23), Moylish Avenue, Ballynanty Beg, and Anthony McCarthy (24), Fairgreen, Garryowen, were in December 2003 found guilty of the murder of Mr Keane at Drombana, Limerick, in January 2003. They were also convicted of the attempted murder of Mr Treacy and of falsely imprisoning the two men.
In addition to the life sentences, Mr Justice Paul Carney at the Central Criminal Court sentenced each of them to concurrent terms of 15 years imprisonment for the attempted murder of Mr Treacy and seven years for the false imprisonments.
The appeal opened yesterday before Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns, presiding, Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne and Mr Justice Brian McGovern.
The trial had heard that Mr Keane (36), Garryowen, Limerick, had his hands tied behind his back and was shot once in the head in an execution-style killing. There was also evidence that he was tortured at or before the time of death. Mr Treacy (34), St Mary's Park, Limerick, was stabbed 17 times.
Trevor Burke QC, for Anthony McCarthy, said yesterday the case against his client "all turned on the testimony of Owen Treacy".
He submitted that before the trial, there had been a lack of disclosure in relation to Garda documents about Mr Treacy, which, Mr Burke said, would have "undermined his credibility."
The defence had sought discovery of documentation, such as Garda memos and interviews, relating to Mr Treacy from the prosecution, he said. Mr Burke said the defence received 23 bundles of material but of these only four were relevant. While the defence had been given details of Mr Treacy's previous convictions, the discovery of certain material was refused on grounds that it was not relevant or that it might put a person's life in danger. The information contained in the material that was not produced was relevant to his client's case, Mr Burke said.
Jerome Lynch QC, for Dundon, argued that Mr Justice Carney had "failed to curtail the media". During the trial, counsel for the five men had raised concerns about their clients being pictured and shown on TV in handcuffs, he said.
Paul Burns SC, for the DPP, submitted that the defence was aware of Mr Treacy's background and of the various facts in relation to the feuding gangs in Limerick.
The information which was not disclosed before the trial, and about which complaint was now made, was not relevant, Mr Burns said. "To suggest that it would have made all the difference is opportunist in the extreme." The defence was trying to use tactics in the appeal which had not worked during the trial, he submitted.