Murder victim's friend saw stabbing, court hears
A friend of a man who died from stab wounds following an altercation on the way home from a pub has told a jury that he saw the man accused of murder stab the deceased.
Finbarr O'Mahoney told Isobel Kennedy SC, prosecuting: "I saw the accused stab Mark between the ribs and the waist very forcefully with whatever was in his hand and then I saw blood".
Dane Pearse (aged 21), of Londonbridge Drive, Irishtown, Dublin, has pleaded not guilty at the Central Criminal Court to murdering Mark Spellman at Londonbridge Road, Irishtown on August 4, 2007.
Mr O'Mahoney told the court that he, Mr Spellman and Oisin Hoctor had been walking along Londonbridge Road to Mr Spellman's house after a work night out when Mr Spellman became involved in a confrontation with the accused.
Mr Spellman was walking ahead of his friends and Mr O'Mahoney heard him talking to someone. Mr O'Mahoney caught up to find Mr Spellman around a corner on Londonbridge Drive, involved in what seemed not to be a "friendly situation".
Mr O'Mahoney said the accused and a woman were also on Londonbridge Drive and there appeared to be a "stand-off" between the accused and Mr Spellman.
Mr O'Mahoney said Mr Spellman shook hands with Mr Pearse and they parted company. The three work mates then discussed what had happened and continued to walk to Mr Spellman's house.
On Londonbridge Road Mr O'Mahoney heard noise coming from behind them, so he and his friends turned to see the accused running towards them.
He said the accused ran towards Mr Spellman who removed his jacket and threw it on the ground. Mr O'Mahoney saw Mr Spellman grab the accused by the collar and saw Mr Pearse, "almost concurrently", stab Mr Spellman.
He said the men moved into a garden as he phoned for help. He then saw the accused walk back up the road towards Londonbridge Drive. He said Mr Pearse turned and calmly said: "call your friend an ambulance".
Under cross examination by Diarmaid McGuinness SC, defending, Mr O'Mahoney agreed that during the initial confrontation he had heard Mr Spellman say: "where are you running to" or "why are you running" and that Mr Pearse had replied: "none of your business".
Mr O'Mahoney said that there had "absolutely" been tension between Mr Spellman and Mr Pearse during the initial encounter but he did not know what had caused it.
Mr O'Mahoney agreed that he and his friends had moved away slowly after the encounter and were talking and laughing about it. He agreed that Mr Hoctor had said "that was deadly when your man fell on the ground" although Mr O'Mahoney had not seen the accused on the ground.
Mr Hoctor earlier gave evidence that the three men were walking along the road after the first encounter when Mr Pearse came running at them with a weapon in each hand. Under cross examination; Mr McGuinness suggested to Mr Hoctor that the accused had armed himself in order to defend himself and frighten the men.
Mr McGuinness said Mr Pearse ran back to his house after the initial encounter and did "something he regretted and will regret for the rest of his life" in that he went to his bedroom, took a bat and a knife and went out to frighten the men and defend himself.
Mr McGuinness said his client ran around the corner with a baton and a knife and stopped when he saw the three men because they had not reacted as he had expected them to. Mr McGuinness said his client told gardaí that Mr Spellman and another man ran towards him, Mr Spellman grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, the other man disarmed him of the baton and they then tussled into a garden.
Mr Hoctor said: "That is absolutely incorrect".
Lola Simpson told the court that it was her garden in which the men ended up.
She said she was awake in bed when she heard laughing and chatter outside. She then heard screaming and voices shouting "oh my God", "what the f***", and "Jesus Christ".
She then heard her gate slam open with great force. She jumped out of bed and heard a "stampede" towards her front door. She looked out of her window and saw a tall man bending over what she later realised was a body on the ground and another man running out of the gate.
Mrs Simpson said the tall man lifted the man off the ground "like a rag doll".
She said he got him to his feet but he "melted" back on to the ground. When she ran into her garden she saw Mr Spellman with a very large gouge in his side and his insides hanging out.
The court also heard that a call was made to the emergency services at 2.10am from Mr Pearse's house as he had a severe wound to his arm.
The hearing continues before Mr Justice Paul Carney and a jury of six man and six women.
