THE Special Criminal Court in the Republic has been hearing evidence in the ongoing trial of men accused of the abduction of and assault on businessman Kevin Lunney of contacts between mobile phones that the prosecution alleges were used in the preparation and carrying out of the abduction and assault.

The phone evidence, which lawyers for the accused had tried to prevent from being admitted in the trial, allegedly shows contacts between some of the accused and Cyril McGuinness – the man the prosecution has said organised the abduction, and has since died.

Further contacts between phones attributed to the accused man, Darren Redmond, and a phone attributed to another accused, known as ‘YZ’, on the date of the offences, were also highlighted by the prosecution.

‘YZ’ (40), along with Alan O’Brien (40), of Shelmalier Road, East Wall, Dublin 3; Darren Redmond (27), from Caledon Road, East Wall, Dublin 3; and Luke O’Reilly (67), with an address at Mullahoran Lower, Kilcogy, Co. Cavan, have all pleaded not guilty to false imprisonment and intentionally causing serious harm to Mr. Lunney at Drumbrade, Ballinagh, Co. Cavan on September 17, 2019.

Edel Hannigan, a senior intelligence analyst with An Garda Siochana, told prosecution counsel Sean Guerin SC that she compiled charts showing the various contacts between the mobile phones that gardai said belonged to the accused men and Cyril McGuinness.
Compiled charts

She also compiled charts of phone cell sites in Dublin and Cavan that some of the calls passed through.

Ms. Hannigan said McGuinness’s phone had contacted the phone attributed to Mr. Redmond four times on September 12, seven days before the abduction.

There were “extensive contacts” between a phone attributed to Luke O’Reilly, ending in ‘640’, and McGuinness throughout August and September.

On September 16, when the prosecution alleges the accused men carried out “preparatory” work for the abduction, McGuinness’s phone contacted the 640 phone at 10pm in a call that lasted two-and-a-half minutes.

The Special Criminal Court further heard that on the day of the abduction, McGuinness’s phone called the 640 number at 7.30pm and 7.54pm. The first call lasted just over four minutes, and the second was 42 seconds long.

The following day, McGuinness’s phone called the 640 number at 9.20am and at 3.30pm. The calls lasted 136 seconds and 116 seconds.

Mr. Lunney, a director of Quinn Industrial Holdings (QIH), has told the court that he was bundled into the boot of a car near his home and driven to a container where he was threatened and told to resign as a director of QIH.

His abductors cut him with a Stanley knife, stripped him to his boxer shorts, doused him in bleach, broke his leg with two blows of a wooden bat, beat him on the ground, cut his face, and scored the letters QIH into his chest.

They left him bloodied, beaten and shivering on a country road at Drumcoghill in Co. Cavan where he was discovered by a man driving a tractor.