‘I blame myself for slapping him’

ROBERT Holohan’s father was questioned yesterday about his late son’s temper tantrums and Mr Holohan said there were times he had to slap him on the legs and tell him to stop.

Mark Holohan was giving evidence on the second day of the trial of Wayne O’Donoghue, aged 21, of Ballyedmond, Midleton, who denies the charge of murdering Robert, aged 11, on January 4 last.

Defence senior counsel, Blaise O’Carroll cross-examined Mr Holohan at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Cork.

“He would throw temper tantrums,” he suggested.

Mr Holohan replied: “He would, no doubt about that. I used to slap him and say you are to stop. Sometimes he might be defiant. I often blame myself for slapping him because of my own tiredness.”

He blamed himself for over-reacting to Robert’s behaviour and he agreed there were times when he gave Robert a good slap two or three times on the legs, leaving a red mark. He felt there may have been times that Robert would draw him out and that he (Mr Holohan) would be short-fused.

Mr Holohan recalled coming home on January 4 at 5.30pm to find that Robert was missing. “It was getting late and he was afraid of the dark,” the deceased’s father said.

“I rang Robert’s phone a few times to no avail. I left a message, ‘Robert, Would you get in contact with us here. We are trying to find you. Ring home’,” Mr Holohan testified.

Later as a full scale search was underway locally, Wayne O’Donoghue told Mr Holohan he had checked a local woods and he would go back and search again.

Mr Holohan said there was no point if he had been there already. He suggested another area for him to search.

Mr Holohan did not notice anything suspicious about the behaviour of the accused at the time and recalled that he was involved in the search as well as anyone else.

“As time went on it became a bit of a nightmare. We honestly hoped he would turn up,” he said.

However, the body was located on January 12. Wayne O’Donoghue was pencilled in for a prayer of the faithful at Robert’s funeral. The only reason he didn’t was because Cork hurler, Seán Óg Ó hAilpín, texted the family and offered to do one of the prayers.

On January 15, the guards told him that Wayne O’Donoghue had been arrested and had made certain admissions. Mr Holohan said: “I couldn’t believe it.”

He said Robert looked up to Wayne O’Donoghue and actually idolised him.

Robert’s grandfather, William Murray, said: “Wayne was Robert’s God, even though he was years older than him.”

Mr Murray, who is Majella Holohan’s father, was with his daughter and late grandson at around lunchtime on January 4 last. He recalled that Robert was in great form that day. He had been presented with a medal the previous night down at the local GAA club. In fact, on the day of his death, Robert was wearing his black Midleton GAA tracksuit pants.

He also had his mobile phone with him. Robert saved up some money that he got for Christmas and decided to buy a mobile phone on December 28. Even though he only had the phone for those few days before his death he had gotten into the habit of keeping contact with home on his phone. Some days he would ring coming up to meal time and ask his mother if they were going to have pasta.

Mr Murray got on particularly well with his grandson and referred yesterday to the medication the boy was on for Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder.

“He was a very loving grandson. He would be talking non-stop and messing with his sister. When he took his tablet he calmed down. He was a happy-go-lucky kind of child.”

Most of the remaining witnesses in the second day of the trial were called to give evidence about the time that Robert’s silver BMX bike was found on the side of the road.

The trial before Mr Justice Paul Carney and the jury continues today.