Man threatened to kill driver, court hears

An Arklow woman has told how a man accused of murder jumped in her car following a fight in an Arklow nightclub and later threatened to kill her and her parents if she did not drive him away after the alleged killing, a court has heard.

Anthony O’Reilly, 22, with an address at Cleggan Park, Ballyfermot, Dublin, is charged with the murder of Daniel McDonald, 21, on Main Street, Arklow on February 2, 2007.

O’Reilly has pleaded not guilty to murdering Mr McDonald, dangerous driving causing the death of Mr McDonald and intentionally or recklessly grabbing the steering wheel of Jenny Tobin’s car causing it to swerve in the direction of Mr McDonald.

Miss Tobin told the Central Criminal Court at Dublin she was in her car near Rascals nightclub when an angry O’Reilly came to her car asking if she had anything he could use.

She called her friend Samantha to get in the car and then O’Reilly jumped on top of her friend in the passenger seat.

“Then I noticed that there was fellas around my car kicking it.”

Mr McDonald was there as well and she said.

“He (O’Reilly) said to me drive the f***en car or you’re dead. He was shouting he was angry and he was shouting.”

She said she was fairly afraid and did not know what was going on.

“The passenger window was open. Samantha started shouting his foot’s stuck, his foot’s stuck it was only then I realised Daniel’s at the side of my car with his foot stuck in the window.”

She kept driving slowly and let the window down to free his foot.

O’Reilly was going mad she said and demanded she drive back to the main street and told her to drive to Hattons because he had a shotgun.

As they drove back down the street someone kicked her wing mirror she said and as they neared the chemist she saw Mr McDonald standing on the side of the street.

“He (O’Reilly) must have noticed him as well, he leaned over and grabbed the steering wheel and turned it in the direction Daniel was standing,” Miss Tobin said.

She corrected the car but said if she had not she was sure it would have hit Mr McDonald.

O’Reilly then demanded she follow a red car which stopped and O’Reilly then got into.

She said O’Reilly drove off at speed like he was not in control of the car and swiping hers as he took off.

The Mr McDonald rang her asking if she was she “still with that f***en idiot” and saying both of them were “f***en dead”.

Moments later O’Reilly came running back up the street with no shirt on a blood all over his chest and he got into her car.

“He was shouting. He was saying drive the f***en car I’m after killing someone and if you don’t drive I’ll kill your ma and pa.”

She drove him to the Garda station then called her friend.

Mr Justice Kevin O’Higgins and the jury of six men and six women watched CCTV footage yesterday that showed scenes inside Rascals nightclub where the two men got into a fight and were thrown out by bouncers.

Footage from Arklow’s main street showed a body walking onto Main Street on the left hand side of the road and stopping near the centre line with lights shining between the legs.

A red car approaches on the left hand side of the road and video stills show a body being thrown in the air the car heading towards the footpath.

The body is then seen lying on the left hand side of the road as people gather around it.

The trial continues.