Man 'blanked out after first few stabs', court told

A Dublin man who denies the murder of his father at their home in December 2001 claims he "blanked out after the first few stabs" in a statement to gardaí.

In a signed statement, Mr Gary Waters allegedly told gardaí that he didn’t mean to kill his father, 59-year-old Mr John Waters on December 29, 2001.

"I just grabbed a knife and smashed him with it. I don’t know how many times. I blanked out after the first few stabs" Mr Waters told gardaí.

"He gave me a kick saying 'get out of my flat'. I didn’t mean to kill him" he said.

In the Central Criminal Court, Mr Gary Waters (aged 31) of Oliver Bond House, Dublin 8, has pleaded not guilty to the murder of his father at their flat.

Mr John Waters was found dead on the floor of his flat by gardaí shortly after they received a distraught emergency call from his son, who was "sobbing and crying" on the phone.

Garda Liam Tobin confirmed to prosecuting counsel Mr Ciaran O’Loughlin SC that according to the garda statement, the deceased had a large number of stab wounds to his body.

Garda Tobin told the jury that Mr Waters was treated with methodone, a heroin substitute, by a doctor while he was in detention at Kevin St garda station.

He told Mr O’Loughlin that Mr Waters showed signs of heroin abuse to the doctor and told him he "had a bag of heroin" the day before.

The prosecution case continues before Mr Justice Kevin O’Higgins and a jury of seven women and five men.