Gardaí will seek to charge ‘Del Boy’ Hutch after he crashed into elderly Ukrainian refugee

The Sunday Independent understands that investigators suspect that the convicted killer was driving dangerously on May 27 when he struck the elderly woman with “speed being a major factor”.

Well-placed sources say officers at Store Street garda station are confident there is already enough evidence to recommend charging the nephew of Gerry ‘The Monk’ Hutch with dangerous driving causing serious injury.

The Ukrainian woman, aged in her 60s, is currently in an induced coma in hospital, it is understood.

“It is unknown if she will ever recover, or if it is medically safe for medics to attempt to awaken her from the induced coma,” added the source.

“The investigation is ongoing. When it is completed, a file will be sent to the DPP outlining what charges are to be recommended.”

Officers have already interviewed witnesses and there is a crime investigator’s report from the scene, which evaluate factors including speed and the circumstances around how the collision occurred.

The Ukrainian woman was crossing the road at Amiens Street in the city centre at lunchtime on Friday, May 27, when she was struck by the 37-year-old’s motorbike.

The woman, who had only recently fled her native war-torn country, suffered serious head injuries.

The convicted killer did a U-turn from gardaí just minutes before he crashed, sparking an investigation by the Garda Ombudsman.

Hutch passed an alcohol breath test at the scene of the accident.

Investigating detectives also secured a routine blood sample from Hutch in hospital in the aftermath of the accident and await those results. The toxicology screen on Hutch’s blood sample will determine if there were drugs in his system.

Informed sources reveal that Hutch was driving his high-powered motorbike in Fairview where gardaí were carrying out a search on a man on the street.

When Hutch spotted gardaí, he “seemed to panic and do a U-turn”.

“Gardaí did not know that it was ‘Del Boy’ Hutch on the motorbike. But they spotted his reaction, an abrupt U-turn, after he noticed the garda squad car.”

Gardaí did not give chase — but they put it out on the radio that the motorbike had done a suspicious turn. Within a minute or so, the same motorbike had hit the elderly Ukrainian woman refugee.

“There was no chase but even so, gardaí opted to refer the matter to the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (Gsoc), as this could be viewed as a potential garda interaction with Hutch ahead of the crash,” a senior source explained.

The woman was crossing the roadway near Connolly Train Station when the motorbike driven by Hutch crashed into her.

Derek ‘Del Boy’ Hutch, who has been heavily involved in organised crime and served a jail term for manslaughter, also suffered minor injuries during the incident.

But sources say he was “standing up in the immediate aftermath on the roadside” and his injuries were very minor. He was also transported to hospital, but was released shortly afterwards.

The nephew of Gerry ‘The Monk’ Hutch was only released from prison last year, after serving lengthy jail terms for manslaughter and an armed robbery.