By Alex Greaney
Deliveroo cyclist George Gonzaga Bento was found not guilty on Tuesday of murdering Josh Dunne at East Wall on January 26 of last year..
During the six week trial it was revealed that Bento (36) stabbed Josh (16) twice in the chest when Bento and a colleague tried to recover a stolen bike in East Wall. Bento claimed he acted in self-defence when he stabbed Ballymun teenager Dunne.
Brazilian Bento was also acquitted of the charges of producing a knife in a deadly manner to intimidate others and two of assault causing harm. He claimed that he pulled out a knife he used for carrying fruit and stabbed three people, killing Josh Dunne.
The prosecution in the trial claimed that Bento used excessive force in responding to the threat which resulted in the death of a 16 year old boy.
After the not guilty verdict was revealed, Bento was visibly relieved and hugged his family, while Josh Dunne’s family were noticeably upset by the verdict.
After the verdict Bento said: “I am very grateful, I pray a lot for that. I am not in shock.” He praised his legal team and that now he wanted to focus more on his family. When asked about Josh Dunne’s family he said: “I say sorry at the beginning and at the end, hopefully one day she [Diane, Josh’s Mother] could forgive me for what happened.”
Dunne’s family left the court without making a comment but Diane later said on social media that: “I am not going down easy, I’ll keep fighting for Josh until the day I die.”
The jury reached their unanimous verdicts on all counts in less than eight hours.
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