Man found guilty of Donegal church car park murder

The court ruled last month that statements made by Kelly to gardaí in which he admitted driving Mr Andrew Burns from Strabane, Co Tyrone across the border to Co Donegal where he was shot dead were admissible in evidence.

Martin Kelly (aged 37), a bus driver, of Barrack St, Strabane, Co Tyrone was convicted of the murder of Mr Andrew Burns (aged 27), an unemployed man, at Donnyloop, Castlefin, Co Donegal on February 12, 2008.

He was also found guilty of the unlawful possession of a firearm with intent to endanger life on the same date.

The shooting was heard by a group of five young people from Clady, Co Tyrone who were walking in the area.

Kelly's trial began in early October but after two days of evidence the court started a "trial within a trial" to decide on the admissibility of statements made by Kelly while in garda custody in Letterkenny and a statement made by Kelly to two senior gardaí at a hotel in the North.

The "trial within a trial" lasted 12 days.

Prosecuting counsel Mr Tom O' Connell SC said that Kelly was part of a joint enterprise or plot to lure Andrew Burns to Donnyloop on the pretext that he was required to go on an IRA operation in which it was intended to murder a PSNI officer who was dating a girl in Donnyloop.

When they got to Donnyloop they were met by three men who were known as members of Oglaigh na hEireann.

The court was shown a video recording of when Martin Kelly was interviewed by Chief Superintendent Diarmuid O' Sullivan and Superintendent Kevin English at a hotel in Ballymena in the North on March 11, 2010.

Kelly said that a week before the murder he was approached by Mr A who asked him to take Andrew Burns to Donnyloop for "a punishment beating or shooting". He met Mr A the next day and he told him that Mr B and Mr C would be there for the shooting.

Kelly told the officers that he knew it was "an IRA operation" and he said he had done other jobs for the IRA but had never been sworn in himself. He said that on the day of the murder he picked up Mr Burns at the KFC in Strabane and drove him in his car to Donnyloop car park.

When they got there he saw a red van, Mr Burns got out of the car went to the van but came back and said the boys in the van were not for him. Mr Burns got back in the car and he (Kelly) drove out of the car park, waited about five minutes and then drove back into the car park.

Mr Burns got out of the car and then Mr A walked past him. Then Mr B approached Andrew Burns and went to pull the trigger of his gun but the gun jammed. Mr Burns started to run towards the car park exit, the gunman, Mr B, ran after him and fired a shot which injured him.

Kelly said that Andrew Burns stumbled but kept running towards the church but Mr B chased him and fired a second shot. He said that Mr A, Mr B and Mr C then got back into the car and Mr C shouted at him to keep calm, to drive out of the car park slowly and keep the lights off. He said he could see that Andrew Burns had stumbled and was lying on the road at that stage.

Kelly said he drove to Clady village where Mr B handed him the revolver inside a black plastic bag and told him to dispose of it. He put it in the side of a hedge. He then drove the three men to the Fir Trees Hotel in Strabane where he left them.

He told the gardaí that he had known Mr A "all my life", Mr B for 15 years and Mr C for 10 years.

Martin Kelly told the court during the "trial within a trial" that after his arrest when he was taken to Letterkenny Garda Station he was "in fear for his life".

"There were certain people connected with dissident republicans who were interested to find out what the police were asking me," he said.

The court remanded Kelly for sentencing when a victim impact statement will be heard on January 24 next year.