I witnessed Regency horror and look on Daniel Kinahan's face has stayed with me
It's been a decade since the most brazen murder in the Republic of Ireland's history – and I saw the terrifying events unfold before my very eyes.Particular moments from the infamous gangland assault at the Regency Hotel in Dublin on February 5, 2016 remain vivid in my memory, including the expression on Daniel Kinahan's face. But I'll come to that in a moment.Here, I recount my own recollections from that terrible afternoon which ignited an all-out war between the Hutch and Kinahan crime gangs, ultimately claiming 18 lives.For background, my circumstances were entirely different then. I was a journalism student at Technology University Dublin and when I wasn't attending lectures, I was typically travelling around Ireland and Northern Ireland reporting on combat sports.On this particular day, I was getting ready for the 'Clash of the Clans' MGM boxing event at the National Stadium in south Dublin.However, while the drama typically happened in the ring, on this occasion, the violence erupted at the weigh-in the previous day. And it proved far more lethal than any of the hundreds of professional bouts I've covered.My role was to interview fighters and equipped with my voice recorder, I turned up at the Regency on February 5.I sat down and waited for my two colleagues to show up but while doing so, I spotted a man at the bar engaged in lively conversation with other recognisable figures from the Irish boxing world. There was absolutely no mistaking it was Daniel Kinahan.At that point, his substantial involvement in MGM boxing (which later became MTK before ultimately shutting down) was common knowledge. Yet his connections to organised crime were evident, and I recall texting my colleagues to mention there were some "dodgy characters" in attendance.What was particularly striking was just how calm and unbothered Kinahan appeared. He seemed larger than life, sharing laughs with his mates without any apparent concerns.He certainly wasn't skulking in the shadows as he does nowadays.It felt oddly uncomfortable, and it was obvious this was someone who, at that moment, believed himself to be untouchable.Yet, unknown to him, three gunmen disguised in counterfeit Garda ERU gear, along with two accomplices, one in drag, were en route with firearms to attempt his assassination. And while he would emerge unscathed, not all his companions were so lucky.Eventually, my two colleagues turned up, and we settled into our seats in the main function room where the weigh-in was scheduled to occur.Sharing an image on our combat sports Facebook page, I captioned it: "MGM weigh-ins. Great weekend ahead. Stay posted."None of us could have anticipated the nightmare that would unfold moments later...Attempting to make the journey worthwhile, I requested a brief interview with one of the fighters, Dublin's Stephen Ormond, after he'd successfully made weight. The function room was buzzing with noise, an Arctic Monkeys track blaring through the speakers, so I suggested we step into the corridor leading to the hotel entrance - which would soon become the scene of a killing.I hit record on my device and we started discussing his upcoming bout. Everything seemed to be going smoothly until his trainer, Paschal Collins, called out to us.While I can't remember his precise words, he firmly instructed him to wrap up the interview immediately. Moments later, he issued another stern warning for him to leave.Looking puzzled, Stephen apologised and was quickly ushered away, leaving me to press stop on my recorder, convinced the short chat had been pointless.As I was about to head back inside, the function room door flew open and a woman, whom I recognised as one of the MGM organisers, yelled at me to flee. The terror in her voice and the panic in her eyes as she shouted remain vivid in my memory.I turned right towards the hotel entrance, where several gunmen wielding what appeared to be AK-47s and disguised in fake Garda uniforms had materialised. Following the crowd, I sprinted past them without a moment's hesitation, before deafening gunshots rang out like cannon fire, leaving David Byrne, a senior figure in the Kinahan organisation, collapsed in a pool of blood near the reception desk.Sean McGovern, another close associate of Kinahan, was also shot during the incident, though he managed to survive, unlike Byrne. I can still recall the chilling screams of women and children as gunshots rang out and heading outside, I witnessed Paschal jump over a wall across from the hotel.I followed suit, and huddled in someone's garden, my mind in complete turmoil, I questioned what on earth had just occurred.Worried my life might be at risk, I attempted to remain as quiet as possible, before finally returning once the situation had settled.My first thought was a potential terrorist incident, particularly given the sudden arrival of what I believed were armed emergency personnel. Was there an explosive device in the building? Who were they shooting at?But I later discovered the gunmen were not police officers, and they arrived in disguise to execute a bold gangland killing.We returned to our gym, all of us a bit shaken, and the incident quickly became the nation's biggest news story. The consequences have been extensively documented, and to gain a fuller picture of what happened and where the main figures are a decade later, you can listen to our two-part Shattered Lives special on the Regency 10 years on here.It's remarkable an innocent bystander wasn't killed that day at the Regency and the sound of gunfire was unlike anything I have experienced since. That evening, I traversed the city and headed towards Busáras. Life around me continued as usual. However, as I settled into my bus seat to journey home after the most terrifying day, I knew it would be an experience I'd never forget.A decade later, that still holds true.
