The Special Criminal Court has extended an order preserving the anonymity of the criminal known as YZ who inflicted most of businessman Kevin Lunney's serious injuries during his kidnap ordeal.
The order was due to expire at midnight today but the man's lawyers successfully applied for an extension until next week to allow them to go to the High Court seeking an order that he should remain anonymous until other matters before the courts are dealt with.
Michael O'Higgins SC told Mr Justice Tony Hunt, presiding at the three-judge, non-jury Special Criminal Court, that the extra time was needed to allow solicitors time to file papers to the High Court. Sean Guerin SC, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, said that YZ should be named "in the normal way".
Abduction and torture
Mr Justice Hunt agreed to extend the order for one week until Monday, December 20th, when the man and his two co-accused are due to be sentenced for their roles in the abduction and torture of Mr Lunney.
Following the trial earlier this year YZ was convicted along with two other men of false imprisonment and intentionally causing harm to Mr Lunney at a yard at Drumbrade, Ballinagh, Co Cavan on September 17th, 2019.
The trial heard that Mr Lunney, a director of Quinn Industrial Holdings (QIH), was driving along a narrow laneway leading to his home when a BMW reversed into his Toyota Landcruiser.
Two men got out of the BMW and dragged Mr Lunney from his vehicle before YZ approached, held a Stanley knife to Mr Lunney's face and told him to get into the boot of his Audi A4.
YZ drove with his two accomplices, and Mr Lunney in the boot, to a horse trailer in a remote farmyard in Cavan where they stripped Mr Lunney to his boxer shorts, doused him in bleach, shattered his shin bone with two blows of a wooden bat, punched and kicked him, sliced his face with a Stanley knife and carved the letters QIH into his chest.
During the ordeal his attackers repeatedly told Mr Lunney to resign from his position with QIH and told him to put a stop to legal proceedings he was involved with in Belfast and Dublin.
Driver
Delivering the court's verdict last month, Mr Justice Hunt said that YZ was "heavily involved in these crimes before, during and after the commission thereof."
He said the court was satisfied that YZ was the driver of the Audi A4 that was used to take Mr Lunney to a yard in Cavan and that he was "responsible for inflicting most of Mr Lunney's serious injuries".
YZ has multiple previous convictions including one for helping to dispose of a body following a murder.
