The Dublin Bus driver accused of dangerous driving causing death at Wellington Quay in Dublin has been found not guilty by a jury at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court on the eve of the third anniversary of the tragedy.
Kenneth Henvey (51), of Whitethorn Crescent, Palmerstown, had denied dangerous driving causing the deaths of two men and three women on February 21st, 2004.
Mr Henvey's legal team read a statement on his behalf following the verdict in which he said that since the tragic event his thoughts had never been far from the victims and the families of those who lost their lives.
He said that as he struggled to understand the events of that day he prayed that all involved had the strength to move forward and rebuild their lives.
Mr Henvey thanked those who had supported him, including his family, friends, colleagues, his legal team, the jury and members of the public.
The jury took just over four hours to return the not-guilty verdict and were thanked by Judge Michael White, who described the case as tragic for everyone involved. He excused them from jury service for 15 years.
Mr Henvey's wife broke down and rushed to her husband's side as Judge White told him he was discharged from the indictment.
Family members of those who died were in court throughout the trial and left quickly following the verdict without speaking to reporters.
Judge White had told the jury that if it accepted what was urged upon them by Mr Henvey's side - that the incident had been caused by a sudden malfunction in the engine which led to the vehicle going out of control - or accepted that such a malfunction could have happened, then they should acquit.
Judge White told the jury it did not have to establish how the accident took place, but decide the guilt or innocence of Mr Henvey.
He had given the jury the option of finding Mr Henvey not guilty of dangerous driving causing death but guilty of the lesser offence of careless driving.
The verdict came on the 11th day of the trial in which the prosecution had called 52 witnesses including eyewitnesses, Dublin Bus employees and Volvo engineers. The defence had called three witnesses including two Bus Éireann drivers who said they had experienced power surges on a bus in Waterford.
The jury heard that a number 66 bus had pulled in some distance from the kerb at Wellington Quay in front of Mr Henvey's parked bus. A crowd of up to 30 people moved forward to board the 66 bus when Mr Henvey's bus mounted the pavement and drove up the inside of the 66, hitting the people waiting to board it.
The jury heard that when the bus stopped Mr Henvey put his head in his hands and began sobbing saying "this can't be happening".
Five people died. They were named as Kathleen Gilton (69), of Newtown, Maynooth, Co Kildare; Teresa Keatley (43), of Sillogue Avenue, Ballymun; Margaret Traynor (59), of Tulip Court, Darndale; Kevin Garry (43), of Riverdale, Leixlip, Co Kildare; and Vasyl Tyminskyy (33), of Kew Park Avenue, Lucan, Co Dublin.