AFTER TWO TIRALS lasting a combined 17 weeks over a two-year period, Gerard Cervi has been found guilty of murdering a father of three in a notorious shooting at Bray Boxing Club.

However Cervi (36), who has been in custody for over five years since his arrest, was acquitted by the Central Criminal Court jury of attempting to murder well-known coach Pete Taylor and a third man, Ian Britton, during the attack at the early morning gym class.

The defendant has no previous convictions and the prosecution did not elucidate a motive for the crime.

The jury of six men and six women took seven hours and 59 minutes over three days to unanimously accept the prosecution’s case on the first count that Gerard Cervi was the gunman who fired nine shots into a crowded gym, killing Robert ‘Bobby’ Messett.

Messett, a 50-year-old father of three, died from a single gunshot wound to the head.

The trial heard that a group of people had assembled at the boxing club in the early hours for a training session when a gunman appeared at the door and opened fire. Taylor and Britton were injured while Messett died immediately at the scene.

Prosecuting counsel had told the jury that CCTV evidence was sufficient to convict Cervi, but when added to the presence of his DNA and fingerprints in a Volkswagen Caddy van that the prosecution alleged was used by the gunman, it led to the “inevitable” conclusion that he was guilty.

The 12 jurors rejected the defence case that there wasn’t an “iota” of evidence to identify Cervi as the gunman.

Cervi from the East Wall area in Dublin 3, had pleaded not guilty to murdering Robert ‘Bobby’ Messett at Bray Boxing Club, Bray Harbour, Co Wicklow on 5 June, 2018.

He also pleaded not guilty to the attempted murders of Taylor and Ian Britton on the same date and at the same location.