Murder victim's nephew gives evidence in court
The nephew of a man murdered at a funeral in Sligo has told a jury that his accused cousin allegedly shouted to the assembled crowd: "Shoot them, kill them, shoot them".
Mr Patrick "Jaws" Ward jnr (aged 30) has told the Central Criminal Court that when he arrived with his wife and father to the cemetery for a family funeral, they were met by a crowd of 150 people.
"My father shouted at the Bumbee Michael "Hitler" McDonagh, saying "I want to talk to you", he didn’t answer. He shouted again to the "Hitler". "Hitler" said to the crowd, "Shoot them, kill them, shoot them", Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr told the jury.
Five men have pleaded not guilty to the murder of Mr Patrick "Deuce" Ward in May 1999 at Carrownanty Cemetery in Ballymote, Co. Sligo.
Mr Michael "Hitler Bumbee" McDonagh snr (aged 58), Mr Martin "Bumbee" McDonagh snr (aged 53), Mr Michael McDonagh jnr (aged 29), Mr Patrick McDonagh (aged 33) and Mr Martin "Spider Bumbee" McDonagh jnr (aged 26) from Hertfordshire in London have all denied the murder of Mr Ward.
Mr "Deuce" Ward, (aged 38), a father of six originally from Galway but resident in Manchester had travelled to Ireland for the funeral of his uncle, also Patrick Ward, in Ballymote, Co. Sligo on May 10 1999 when he was fatally shot at.
The five have also pleaded not guilty to the possession of a firearm with the intent to in danger life. They also have denied the attempted murder of Mr Patrick "Jaws" Ward snr, Mr Patrick "Jaws" Ward jnr and Mr Edward "Ned" Ward on the same occasion.
The accused men also pleaded not guilty to causing violent disorder on the same date.
Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr told the court that he had been living in England at the time of the fatal shooting and had returned with his wife for the funeral of her uncle.
The father of four told the jury he is the second cousin of the accused Mr Michael "Hitler Bumbee" McDonagh snr and his brother Mr Martin "Bumbee" McDonagh snr. He said he knew them and their sons "nearly all my life". He said that "Hitler" McDonagh’s niece was married to his uncle Bernie Ward.
"Jaws" Paddy McDonagh jnr told the jury the deceased was his uncle, Mr Patrick "Deuce" Ward. The witness said he travelled to the funeral on the morning of May 10, 1999 with his wife, Shirley and his father in a green hi-ace Toyota 99G van from Galway.
"We were stopped at police check points a half a mile form the graveyard. Six to seven police officers searched the van. There were a couple of shovels in the back, they were used for block paving work", Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr said.
The gardaí, he said, took possession of the shovels, "they took them, they took anything like a wheel brace from the van".
When Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr pulled up at the cemetery, he claims he saw 150 McDonagh’s in front of him.
"There was a lot of movement in the crowd", he said. Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr said he and his father got out of the van and started to walk towards them.
"A load of young lads started throwing tarmac and rocks", he said.
Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr was asked by prosecuting counsel did he recognise any of the men throwing rocks at him and his father. He said he had "seen a few of the "Priest" McDonagh’s" in the crowd, "they are another clan of the Bumbee McDonagh’s".
"My father shouted at the Bumbee Michael "Hitler", saying "I want to talk to you", he didn’t answer. He shouted again to the "Hitler". "Hitler" said to the crowd, "Shoot them, kill them, shoot them", he told the jury.
At this stage, Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr claims four of "Hitler" McDonagh’s sons stepped out from the crowd armed with handguns. "They started firing shots", he said.
"We kept walking forward, pressing the crowd back. The four sons of "Hitler Bumbee"snr went back into the crowd. "Bumbee" snr then came out of the crowd with a pick axe in his hand", he said.
Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr told the jury that "Hitler" McDonagh snr then stepped forward with a pick hammer and shouted, "Shoot them, kill them, kill them".
The crowd moved, Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr claims, and six men came forward with guns.
"Each took aim and started firing", Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr claims.
"I smelt smoke, I thought I was shot. I thought I wouldn’t feel it if a bullet went through me. I was looking for blood", Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr told the jury.
Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr said his father turned to him and said, "they’re real guns, get back".
"They were still shooting at us as we made our way back", Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr told the jury.
The 30-year-old said he ran because three of the "Hitlers" sons were following him, "they were still shooting at me".
Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr told the jury he ran into the driveway of a house. The owner of the house, he said was over 55 years of age.
"I saw Hilter’s son Michael McDonagh jnr pointing a gun in my direction, he was pointing a hand gun inwards", he said.
Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr, said it was "only a matter of time" before the house was surrounded. He said he "had to get into the house".
The father of four said he slided one of the door’s back and "burst" the other door open "with his shoulder and went into the house".
Mr "Jaws" Ward jnr said his wife then joined him in the house and he looked out a bathroom window where he claims he could see a "big crowd" outside.
He said he could hear "Bumbee" Martin McDonagh say "burn it, break it", which the witness believed to he his 99G van.
"I asked the man who owned the house did he have a gun. He said ‘No’."
The former state solicitor for Sligo, Mr Thomas Tigue said that he was at the rear of his house across from Carrownanty cemetery on the day of the fatal shooting.
Mr Tigue was in the central heating house at the back of his house. When he came out he saw a man running towards him in "a crouched position" in his neighbour’s garden.
"I heard a commotion on the road. I heard cracks. It sounded like three gun shots. It wasn’t that loud, then I heard the sound of stampeding feet down the road," Mr Tigue told the jury.
Mr Tigue said he saw a crowd of 14-15 youths running down the road aged between 18-25 years of age. He said they were gathering outside the cemetery.
"As the group passed, one man peeled away from the group and came into my driveway. I saw that he was being followed by a man carrying a gun, he was running also," Mr Tigue said.
This man later told Mr Tigue that his name was Ward. The former state solicitor for Sligo said the Ward man was well built, was fair and was wearing a navy blue anorak and was aged 23 or 24 years of age.
"He shouted, let me in, let me in and then he started shouting about a gun", Mr Tigue said.
"I declined to let him in", he said.
"He was carrying a hedging knife used for cutting hedges in his hand. He asked again, ‘let me in, let me in’. I said no," Mr Tigue said.
"Then he asked me did I have a gun," he said.
The gunman, Mr Tigue said, was aged 24 or 25 years of age, was well built and had close cropped hair. Mr Tigue told the jury he thought the handgun was a "German Luber hand gun with a thin barrel and a calibre of about .22", he said.
The gunman was standing about 30-40 yards away from Mr Tigue and the Ward man. The gun man had been running after the group of people, Mr Tigue said, but when the Ward man "peeled off" from the group, he stopped in Mr Tigue’s driveway.
"He loosed off a few shots indiscriminately before he stopped", Mr Tigue said.
At this stage the Ward man was standing a foot in front of Mr Tigue outside his front porch. "The gun man stopped in his tracks at the gate when he saw the chap at my porch, he pointed the gun at myself and the Ward man".
The Ward man then made a flying leap at my front door and broke it in", he said. Mr Tigue said the door was a solid mahogony door yet the Ward man managed to break the frame and gain entry to his house.
After the Ward man ran upstairs, Mr Tigue stayed outside until the gunman had ran away down the road in the Tubbercurry direction.
When Mr Tigue went into his house he heard the Ward man upstairs going from room to room. "He said he was looking for a gun".
"When he came back down, he was still asking for a gun. He said all houses like this have guns, I repeated that I didn’t have a gun", Mr Tigue said.
A young woman then joined the Ward man, Mr Tigue said. The pair, he said, promised to come back in a few days to pay for the damage done to the door.
The trial continues before Mr Justice Iarfhlaith O’Neill.
