A 37-year-old convicted drug dealer has been sentenced to life in prison for the murder of a dissident republican as part of the Hutch Kinahan feud.
Christopher Slator from Carnlough Road in Cabra was found guilty at the Special Criminal Court today of the murder of Michael Barr at the Sunset House Pub in Dublin on 25 April 2016.
He is the fourth person to be convicted in connection with the murder and the third to be jailed for life.
Mr Barr's family said father of five was "irreplaceable" and that all that matters to the Kinahan Organised Crime Group was wealth and drugs.
Slators DNA was discovered on a mask and runner inside the getaway car which was found on fire a short distance from the murder scene.
He took off his runners and threw them in the car to be burned while the others kept theirs on.
Another DNA profile from a separate similar mask and a baseball cap belonged to his friend Eamon Cumberton, of Mountjoy Street, Dublin 7, who was jailed for life for the murder in 2019.
Slator and Cumberton also booked a flight to Bangkok via Dubai the day after the shooting and neither had any checked or hand luggage for the long-haul trip with a return date almost one month later.
Ms Justice Tara Burns said the court finds that because his DNA was found there, Christopher Slator was in the getaway car on the night of the murder and took part in the "murderous plot" to kill Michael Barr.
The judge said that no rational explanation exists to point to his innocence and that on the DNA evidence alone the court finds him guilty of the murder of Michael Barr.
The judge also said that Slator's highly suspicious flight from this jurisdiction is supportive of his involvement.
A long haul flight booked on a suspicious mobile phone just three hours before travel with no luggage is "extremely unusual".
She also said the court is of the view Christopher Slator fled because he was involved in the murder the night before.
Previous convictions
Christopher Slator has 59 previous convictions. Detective Garda David Chapman said three were for possession of a knife, two for sale and supply of drugs in Ireland, two for violent behaviour in a garda station, two for assault and that he was also convicted of assaulting a constable in the UK.
In a victim statement today Michael Barr's partner said her life has been turned upside down - his five children had been robbed of a devoted father.
Mr Barr's sister said he lay on the bar floor for over 24 hours and they had to hear news as it broke on social media. Noeleen Barr said they were tormented by the thoughts of his last minutes, "the family's screams of sorrow will echo in my head," she said.
Five children have been robbed of devoted father who she said was gunned down at his place of work.
Ms Barr also said the Kinahan Organised Crime Group do not understand the importance of a loving family. All that matters to them is drugs and wealth.
The Kinahan Cartel she said may have taken Michael's life but they didn't take his lasting love and legacy.
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Along with Eamon Cumberton, 43-year-old David Hunter of Du Cane Road, White City, London, was jailed for life for the murder of Mr Barr. He has since appealed his conviction.
Michael Barr was the manager of the Sunset House Pub on Summerhill Parade in Dublin and was socialising there on 25 April 2016.
Two armed men wearing what have been described as 'Freddy Krueger' masks burst into the pub at around 8.30pm and shot him seven times - five times in the head.
The two men then ran to a waiting silver Audi vehicle, which was later observed on fire in the Walsh Road area of Drumcondra where the car was set on fire before all three ran to a silver Mondeo and escaped.
However, gardaí arrived at the scene of the burning Audi "before the fire had taken hold" and were able to recover four firearms, two of which were used in the shooting.
Boiler suits, full "theatrical head masks with a face on the front" and a balaclava were also recovered from the Audi.
A discarded mobile phone, found ringing by a garda at the scene of the burning Audi was traced to a mobile phone shop in the Ilac Centre in Dublin.
CCTV revealed the buyer to be Kinahan gangster Martin Aylmer of Casino Park, Marino, Dublin 3, who was jailed in 2018 for his participation in the murder.
