Technology continued to play a central role in the Central Criminal Court yesterday, although gremlins came along too when Det Garda Seán Fitzpatrick took control of the laptop to project a series of CCTV images, writes Kathy Sheridan.
Weeks spent viewing 119 separate pieces of footage had been culled for these few moments before the jury.
First, the images refused to be slowed down. Then they refused to appear at all. Later on, the pictures refused to hold.
Tension built as the hapless detective garda twiddled with icons on his screen. Garda colleagues checked their watches. A sympathetic Dominic McGinn for the prosecution made soothing noises as the long moments ticked by.
"It's easier if everyone isn't looking at him", he said. The temperature in the packed courtroom soared, onlookers shifted uncomfortably, but most continued to stare at Garda Fitzpatrick, willing the Carroll & Kinsella security camera overlooking the Bluebell industrial estate entrance to come to life.
Mr Justice Barry White was offering to rise to ease the pressure when, mercifully, the screen flickered to life, not with Bluebell, but the innards of a car park belonging to Europrise, a wholesale feed company at Blake's Cross on the old Dublin- Belfast road.
Everyone peered intently at the two screens high on either side of the judge's bench, as Det Garda Fitzpatrick pointed out that it wasn't the well-defined car in the foreground gliding into the car park that was of interest, but grainy image of a distant navy-coloured estate car travelling north on the other side of the Europrise fence, a car similar to the Fiat Marea owned by Joe O'Reilly.
The time was 8.55am. A minute later, according to earlier phone evidence, a call was received on O'Reilly's mobile phone from Derek Quearney, bouncing off the Richardstown mast in north Dublin.
Eight minutes later, a security camera focused on the entrance to Murphy's quarry, about 800 metres from the O'Reilly home, picks up - at the top right corner of the screen - a car similar to Rachel O'Reilly's grey/silver Renault Scenic heading away from her home. Seven minutes on, what the detective garda believed to be a dark-coloured estate car, is seen travelling toward the O'Reilly home.
At 9.41am, what may be the grey/silver car belonging to Rachel O'Reilly comes into view returning to the house. Eighteen minutes later, a car the garda believed to be similar to a navy- coloured estate is seen moving away from the area. Seven minutes on, at 10.07am, a similar car is picked up by the camera at Blake's Cross heading towards Dublin.
Mercifully for all concerned, it was another short court day. The last of the witnesses for the prosecution are pencilled in for today.