Knife attack man 'had smoked cannabis'

A south Dublin man who slashed four neighbours with a knife told gardaí he had smoked cannabis beforehand and had been smoking it every night for about 20 years.

He also told gardaí he believed a transmitter had been placed in his car and that someone had been following him around the night before his bloody knife attack on neighbours.

Detective Inspector Eamonn O'Reilly told prosecuting counsel, Mr Cormac Quinn BL, at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, that the accused said he had slept in his car at the Killiney Court Hotel and at one point "after hearing noises" he searched the vehicle for "the transmitter"

Mark Larkin (aged 37), a bricklayer, of Ashlawn Park, Ballybrack, who now resides in the Central Mental Hospital, has pleaded "not guilty by reason of insanity" to intentionally or recklessly causing serious harm to Keith Kelly at his home on January 18, 2008.

He has also pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to assault causing harm to Julie, Peter and Wayne Kelly and to production of a knife on the same date and in the same place.

Det Insp O'Reilly said Larkin told gardaí he even removed the dashboard in his car in his search for the "transmitter" he believed was in the vehicle

Det Insp O'Reilly said Larkin told gardaí he was "sorry" for what he did. He agreed he had smashed his way into Mr Keith Kelly's house next door, leading to him stabbing the victims.

He claimed he had tried to kick the door down at about 5.30 am but then threw "a brick" through a window to gain entrance.

"I went up the stairs carrying the knife, wound-up, angry and annoyed," Larkin said.

Larkin told gardaí he had cameras around his house "to stop people harming my property" and had heard the Kellys "through the wall boasting they had stolen stuff from me".

Det Insp O'Reilly said Larkin claimed he didn't lose his temper easily and this escapade was "totally out of character" for him.

"I never did anything like this before in my life," he said.

Det Insp O'Reilly said Larkin told gardaí he hadn't consumed alcohol before this escapade but had smoked cannabis earlier in the evening. He didn't use other drugs and hadn't taken any other drugs before committing these offences. He told gardaí he had been smoking cannabis since he was a teenager.

Garda Maria Gibbons told Mr Quinn that when she and Garda Feargal O'Grady arrived at the scene shortly after 5.30am they found "a large group of agitated people" outside with shouts of there being a man inside with a knife.

Four people came running out of the house past them with a lot of blood to be seen. She drew her ASP baton when entering the house and they encountered Larkin on the stairs with a knife which he dropped at the request of Gda O'Grady.

Gda Gibbons said Larkin told her he had stabbed people in the house in response to her query if he realised what he had just done.

The trial continues before Judge Desmond Hogan and a jury of six men and six women