A man on trial for the murder of school teacher Ashling Murphy has told a jury at the Central Criminal Court he was “not at all” following a woman with a dog around Tullamore in the hours before Ms Murphy’s body was found.
Jozef Puska, through an interpreter, said it is true he was behind the woman, whom the jury has heard was AnneMarie Kelly, but there was “no bad intention whatsoever”.
Mr Puska began giving evidence, through an interpreter, at 3.35pm on Thursday before the court rose at 4pm. His evidence resumes on Friday.
The 33-year old native of Slovakia, a father of five who has been living here for 10 years and has an address at Lynally Grove, Mucklagh, Co Offaly, has, through an interpreter, pleaded not guilty to the murder of Ms Murphy (23), at Cappincur, Tullamore, on January 12th 2022.
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Ms Murphy died as a result of 11 stab wounds to her neck.
When the last prosecution witness concluded on Thursday about 3.15pm, Mr Justice Hunt allowed the sides 20 minutes after Anne Marie Lawlor SC said she wanted a brief period to ensure all matters were finalised on the prosecution side.
After Ms Lawlor told the judge the prosecution had completed its case, Mr Puska took the stand about 3.35pm.
In reply to his counsel Michael Bowman SC, he said he came here in 2013 and was living in Mucklagh in January 2022 with his wife and family.
After Mr Bowman asked him to outline his own recollection of events on January 12th 2022, he said he left his home on his bike about 11.30am that day and had travelled from Mucklagh to Tullamore. He said he went towards the centre of Tullamore and from there went different routes but could not recall them exactly because he was trying to find his brother’s car and that was why he found himself in some locations twice. His brother had gone to a dentist, he said.
He agreed he was seen on CCTV at various stages in the town. He said his bicycle was a black dark pushbike with a green “needle” on the front with the name Falcon 3 or Storm Falcon.
He was shown a photo of a bicycle and said he could confirm that was the bicycle he was on.
Asked could he remember a woman walking a dog, he said he could recall seeing her on Church Road and had passed her after McDonalds.
He said, towards Digby Bridge, he came off his bike and was pushing it and had a cigarette, he said. He said he was “not at all” following the woman, it was true he was behind her but there was “no bad intention whatsoever”, he was riding his bike all around the town and had no intention of following anyone at all.
Earlier on Thursday, Det Gda Colin O’Leary said he was involved in the detention of Mr Puska at Tullamore Garda station on January 18th and 19th 2022 in connection with the murder of Ms Murphy at Cappincur on January 12th 2022.
Barrister Kevin White read memos of five recorded Garda interviews with Mr Puska, carried out in a question and answer format in the presence of his solicitor and an interpreter.
In one interview at 19.35pm on January 18th, Mr Puska was shown a photograph taken of his hand while he was in St James’ hospital on January 14th 2022 and said he could not recall the photo being taken.
Asked did he know anything about the murder of Ashling Murphy, he replied: “I don’t know anything.” When shown a photograph of Ashling Murphy, he said: “I didn’t see her, I don’t know her.” When told the funeral was that day, he said: “I don’t know anything.”
In another interview on January 18th, he was again shown a photo of Ms Murphy and said: “I never seen that person, I don’t recognise her, No.” Asked if he had contact with her on January 12th 2022, he said: “No, never.”
When shown a clip of Ashling Murphy walking on Convent View on January 12th 2022 at 14.55pm, he was asked did he recognise the person walking and said: “No”.
In another interview on January 19th at 13.45pm, he was shown a clip of AnneMarie Kelly with a dog and said he had seen her. He was shown a CCTV clip of a man behind her on a bike and it was put to him that was him. He replied: “What I can see, this is not chasing, just going through town on bike.”
Asked did he remember an interview with gardaí when he was in hospital on January 14th, in which he allegedly said: “I did it,” he said: “I don’t remember much, I was after surgery and many tablets.”
Asked did he accept there was a “huge amount of evidence” that put him at the crime scene, he said: “No”.
In another interview, gardaí explained to him, if he failed or refused to answer certain questions, including how his DNA was under Ashling Murphy’s fingernails, inferences might be drawn from the failure or refusal. Any such inferences, he was told, might be used to support a case against him but could not on their own lead to a conviction.
The memo recorded Mr Puska was asked to account for possession of a Falcon Storm bike at the location where Ms Murphy’s body was discovered and told he was seen on the bike at locations around Tullamore that day and his DNA was found on it.
He replied: “I’m not giving an explanation to this.”
Asked to account for his DNA being present under Ms Murphy fingernails when he had said he did not know her and had no contact with her, he replied: “I will not comment on that.”
He gave a similar reply when asked about marks and scratches on his hands and forehead observed by Sgt Paul McDonnell at St James’ hospital the day after Ms Murphy’s body was found.
The memo also recorded, when asked to account for his presence at 15.24pm on January 12th at the location where Ms Murphy’s body was discovered, and told he was forensically linked to this location through his DNA under Ms Murphy’s fingernails and his DNA on the Falcon Storm bike, and that his presence may be attributable to his participation in the commission of murder, Mr Puska said he did not wish to comment on that.
When told inferences may be drawn from any failure by him to mention any fact he may later rely on in his defence, being a fact that clearly calls for explanation from him at this time, he said: “No, I don’t wish to comment.”
Earlier, Det Supt Patrick O’Callaghan, who was recalled at the request of the defence, agreed with Mr Bowman that an email was sent to the Garda press office on January 17th 2022 with the subject ‘Ashling Murphy’.
That email stated: “I am the person responsible for Ashling’s murder. I was in Tullamore that evening. I have the black tracksuit. I am so sorry.”
The witness agreed the email was sent to the investigation team and gardaí later spoke to a man with ADHD, was on antidepressant medication, had difficulties with alcohol and little recollection what he did when he drank to excess.
Det Supt O’Callaghan said the man, when told an email had been sent from an IP address linked to him, said he could not remember sending it, must have been drunk and he apologised.
In response to Anne Marie Lawlor SC, for the DPP, the witness agreed the email sender has mental health difficulties and significant issues in his life.
He agreed, when the man was asked why he claimed to have murdered Ms Murphy, he had said: “I’m sick.” The man went on to say he must have sent the email, he was “very sorry, I didn’t murder her, I’m not capable of it”, the witness agreed.
He agreed gardaí were satisfied he had nothing to do with the events in Tullamore and that what he had told them in relation to his difficulties was correct.
The trial continues on Friday.
