Jury hears victim's last words

The last words of a man who lay dying in his father’s arms after being fatally stabbed with a kitchen knife during a row were heard by a murder trial jury at the Central Criminal court today.

"I cradled Christy in my arms. I saw his face turn white in my hands. He said ‘Da why did you do it?’" a murder accused allegedly told Detective Sergeant Gerard McGrath after his arrest.

"I was looking for the rise and fall of his chest but there was nothing there," Mr Thomas Groome (aged 47) told detectives on November 16, 1999.

Mr Groome is pleading not guilty to the murder of his son Christopher Groome (aged 19) in his caravan at Churchview Heights, Edenderry, Co Offaly on November 15, 1999.

Det. Sgt. McGrath was giving evidence about Mr Groome’s arrest and detention following the death of his son.

Consulting his notes he confirmed for Mr Anthony Sammon SC prosecuting, that Mr Groome said: "I held his nose and tried breathing into his mouth, I tried to call for help. He was absolutely freezing at that stage, he had gone stone cold.

"Kelly came back, she took the phone from me and she spoke to someone on how to administer first aid. I was shouting at Kelly to forgive me," he is also alleged to have said. Det. Sgt McGrath said he was "crying uncontrollably" whilst he said this.

Mr Groome explained to detectives that he and his son Christy and girlfriend Ms Kelly Richardson had come home from a disco in Edenderry "roughly about 3 am" and started cooking burgers and sausages in the caravan.

"I recall Christy telling Kelly to hurry up with the food. She just said ‘I’ve only got one pair of hands. I told Christy ‘Kelly is not your mother’, he told me to shut up," Groome allegedly told gardaí.

"Then I told him to shut his mouth. Christy then jumped out of bed and said he’d shut me up," he said.

He told gardai he was on his way outside when he told his son to "stop acting the bollocks" and "a tussle" between himself and his son ensued.

"I picked up the knife on the draining board. In the struggle Christy and I fell backwards towards the door …I don’t remember what hand I had the knife in. Christy fell on top of me frontways, it was after him falling straight on top of me that I stabbed him," Mr Groome said.

Det. Sgt McGrath confirmed for the court that the accused said "Oh Jesus Christ how am I going to live with this?" and said he loved his son very much.

Under cross-examination by defence counsel Mr Patrick MacEntee SC, Detective Inspector Dominic Hayes agreed that the accused was a "man who was manifesting great remorse and sadness" at what happened to his son: "He was, yes".

"He was a man who was having agonies talking about what happened the day before?" asked Mr MacEntee.

"That’s correct," replied Det. Insp. Hayes. "We were trying to find out exactly what happened, you see that he was trying to recall what happened," added Det. Insp. Hayes.

All evidence has been heard and the jury are expected to be sent out to deliberate on a verdict tomorrow.