Accused breaks down in tears

WAYNE O’DONOGHUE broke down in tears yesterday as details of his fatal encounter with Robert Houlihan were described in Courtroom Number Two.

With his head bent and his hands clasping his knees, the accused wiped away tears as his statement of confession to gardaí, made in the presence of solicitor Frank Buttimer, was read out.

The court was told repeatedly how the young man was contemplating suicide and was “in a state of panic” in the hours following Robert’s slumping to the ground.

He went to the kitchen and pulled out a knife.

“I was in complete shock about what I had done, or, what had happened. I can’t describe my feelings at that moment, but my intention was to cut my throat,” the statement read.

The jury was told that the accused, who has pleaded guilty to manslaughter and not guilty to murder, put the knife to his throat as he looked in the mirror, but then threw it back in the drawer.

O’Donoghue later put Robert’s body, which had been lying on the bathroom floor, into his car and drove towards Midleton. He was “shaking” and sat “in a daze” crying at a petrol station after he pulled in there.

He had no idea what he was doing, or, what he was going to do.

The student left the station and headed on to a dual carriageway driving at speed. A garda car passed him and he told gardaí he knew if the car ‘pulled him’, they would know something was wrong, because of the “state” of him.

Later that night, after dumping Robert’s body, he went home, called to his girlfriend, walked the dog and played Playstation. He was conscious of having to “maintain a normal routine”.

Leaving his girlfriend Rebecca Dennehy, he decided he wanted to return to the beach. He had begun to think earlier “how disrespectful it was to place the body where I did”.

He decided he wanted to put the body on the beach so it could be found. He then went to the family shed where he got petrol and also checked for wire with the purpose of using it to hang himself from a tree in the garden.

O’Donoghue drove back to Inch, describing himself as feeling “traumatised”. While there, he spoke to Robert’s body saying ‘Rob’ as if he were alive. He poured some petrol on the plastic which was wrapped around Robert. He was unable to move the body.

The accused decided then to put off his suicide until he had placed the body on the beach and went to see his girlfriend, as he thought it would be the last time he’d see her.

“I wish to say I’m deeply sorry at what happened,” he said in the statement.

“If I could switch roles, I would. There was never any intention to harm him. What happened was a fluke, an accident.”