Four men charged in relation to the murder of David Byrne at the Regency Hotel have been warned their lives are in danger in prison.
There are plans to move former Sinn Fein councillor Jonathan Dowdall and his father Patrick, along with Paul Murphy and Jason Bonney, to a segregated jail wing.
All four appeared at the Special Criminal Court earlier this week charged in connection with the 2016 murder which escalated the bloody Hutch-Kinahan feud.
A source told the Irish Sunday Mirror they are under high security amid fears they will be targeted – and there are plans to move them to their own wing at either Cloverhill or Wheatfield in Dublin.
And “every precaution” is being taken to protect them while they are on remand.
And it is understood once the transfer is made, nobody except the men will be allowed access to the wing.
Members of the Hutch gang housed at Dublin’s Wheatfield Prison follow a similar regime away from other inmates for fear of being attacked.
The source said: “There is serious concern surrounding their safety.
“One of the fears is someone could be sent from the outside into the jail to purposely target them.
“There is talk they are going to be given their own wing in either Cloverhill or Wheatfield Prison and nobody else will be allowed on to it. They are under threat in the jail as well as outside of it.”
David Byrne, 34, was shot dead at the Regency Hotel in Swords, Co Dublin, in February 2016 after five men, three disguised as gardai, stormed the building.
Jonathan Dowdall, 43, with an address at Navan Road, Cabra, North Dublin, was charged with the murder and remanded in custody until June 14 by Mr Justice Tony Hunt.
His father, Patrick Dowdall, 64, also with an address at Navan Road, co-accused Paul Murphy, 59, and 50-year-old Jason Bonney, of Drumnigh Wood, Portmarnock, North Dublin, were charged in relation to the murder.
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