The garda who shot George Nkencho has said he was in fear of his life and felt he had no option but to fire his weapon six times after the 27-year-old lunged at him with a kitchen knife.
The member of the Garda Armed Support Unit gave evidence from behind a screen at the inquest into the death of Mr Nkencho.
Mr Nkencho was armed with a kitchen knife when he was shot and killed outside his family home in Clonee on 30 December 2020 after an earlier assault on a supermarket worker.
Garda A, who has been granted anonymity, told the coroners court that he was on duty at the Armed Support Unit base at Dublin Airport when a call came through that there was a male armed with a knife in a shop near Blanchardstown.
He travelled to the area with his colleague, referred to today as Garda B, and saw around ten members of An Garda Síochána, both in uniform and in plain clothes following Mr Nkencho.
He said Mr Nkencho appeared angry and agitated and was clinching a knife, and Garda A feared he would attack anyone who tried to arrest him.
Garda A said the 27-year-old walked down a laneway and into the driveway of 15 Manorfields drive.
He said he didn't know Mr Nkencho lived there, adding "I thought he was walking around randomly... he was angry looking and snarling".
He said he shouted at him to drop the knife and heard others shouting the same when Mr Nkencho "suddenly lunged at me".
A taser was deployed, sending electrical currents into Mr Nkencho’s body. He "seized up" and fell onto the ground.
Garda A said he went to get the knife, but the taser did not appear to work, and second laser attempt also failed.
He said Mr Nkencho still had the knife clinched in his hand and was trying to get back up.
He said he then moved in to try and kick the knife out of his hand but failed.
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Garda A said Mr Nkencho stabbed at his leg with the knife, but said while he felt contact the knife missed.
The coroners’ court heard Garda B sprayed pepper spray, but it did not have the desired effect.
"He got up and I could remember his anger, his eyes were wild, and he lunged at me," Garda A said.
He said after assessing the situation he believed the only option to save his own life was to fire his firearm at Mr Nkencho.
He said he was shouting to drop the knife and then fired the gun, but Mr Nkencho kept coming at him so he fired again.
"He didn’t appear injured, he was flailing around."
Garda A said he had fired four times and was backed up against a hedge when he fired a fifth time, aiming at the "central mass of the body".
He said "he was going to kill me if he got the chance. I fired for the 6th time", and at this point Mr Nkenko fell to the ground seriously injured.
Coroner Myra Cullinane asked Garda A if he was aware that George Nchenko had mental health issues and if he had known would the approach have been different.
Garda A said he was not aware of mental health difficulties but having that knowledge wouldn’t have changed how he had handled the situation.
He said: "Any action I took was a response to his aggressiveness."
Ms Cullinane asked if he had discharged his weapon in an operational manner before this, to which he replied no.
He said: "His actions were dictating my response… his failure to comply resulted in my actions."
Photographs of the weapons used that day were shown to the jury at the beginning of proceedings today.
These included the taser and firearm that were deployed, the pepper spray cannister, and the knife Mr Nkencho was holding.
'A fluid situation'
Eanna Mulloy, counsel for the Nkencho family, asked Garda A why he or his colleague did not call a more senior officer to alert them to the situation while en route to the call out.
He replied that they were listening to the local garda channel to get up to date information on what was transpiring.
Mr Mulloy asked Garda A if he enquired from local gardaí about the occupants of the house Mr Nkencho was outside of, saying an officer had recognised George Nkencho and knew about his mental health issues.
Mr Mulloy said Garda A "shut out" or ignored anything the local gardaí at the scene had to offer.
Garda A said that every single call out related to a mental illness or some sort of breakdown and having that knowledge in this case would not have changed his actions.
He said "it’s a fluid situation, there’s violence, we’re trying to make the best decision in the moment".
Mr Mulloy asked why Garda A did not step back onto the footpath and away from Mr Nkencho’s personal space.
He questioned why Garda A or Garda B did not use any of the "catalogue" of equipment in the jeep to defuse the situation, to which Garda A replied that there was no time.
He concluded his cross-examination by referring to the video which shows the six shots.
He said the jury has seen the time phases for the six shots and "they can make of that what they want".
Mr Mulloy said it was "six sledgehammers to deal with one nut".
Garda B thought Garda A had been stabbed
A second member of the Armed Support Unit, known as Garda B, who was at the scene, told the inquest he thought Garda A had been stabbed by George Nkensho during the stand off.
He said after the sixth shot was fired and Mr Nkencho fell to the ground, he checked Garda A for injuries but found none.
Garda B said he was unaware that Mr Nkencho had mental health issues and had not heard it said on the garda radio.
Eanna Mulloy, senior counsel for the Nkencho family, asked him if it would have made a difference to how they approached the situation.
He said if they had known, would it have made them pause. Garda B said it would not have made a difference given the threat to Garda A, himself and the public.
He also said he did not hear Mr Nkencho’s sister calling out from the front door, or gardaí shouting at them to go back inside.
The jury asked if he was aware the pepper spray canister was past its use by date, he replied that he did not.
The inquest has concluded for the day and will resume tomorrow.
