THE YOUNG man accused of murdering another teenager outside his house on Waterloo Road told gardaí he had not meant to stab the man, a jury at the Central Criminal Court has heard.
Finn Colclough (18), Waterloo Road, Dublin, denies the murder of student Seán Nolan, Griffith Court, Fairview, on May 26th, 2007. Mr Colclough told gardaí he had not known the stabbing had occurred until he went back inside the house and saw blood on his hands, Det Garda Áine Dalton told Mary Ellen Ring SC, prosecuting.
He told gardaí he had started to wash his hands to get the blood off them and the knife had fallen into the sink at the same time, the court heard.
"My hand was on the blade. I was washing my hands and the knife. I can't really remember," Mr Colclough allegedly told gardaí.
The court heard that Mr Colclough had met Mr Nolan and his two friends shortly before 4am.
He claimed he was carrying three cans of deodorant with him because he had been at a 21st birthday party and had sweated a lot while dancing.
He told gardaí Mr Nolan asked them if they knew a girl called "Saffy" who lived nearby. He said he knew a Saffy, or Sara, because she used to live next door but her family had since moved away.
"We tried to give them directions. They were slightly drunk. They started to get agitated. We weren't giving good directions," Mr Colclough allegedly told gardaí.
With that he and his friends went back into the house but got slightly scared and locked the door, he said.
They could see Mr Nolan and his friends out of a window.
"They had a bottle of wine and were asking if we could open it but we couldn't hear them until we went outside," he reportedly said.
He told gardaí that he had picked up two knives which he thought were sitting on the kitchen table and had gone outside waving them, in the hope that it would scare them away.
Mr Colclough allegedly said that as he ran out screaming, one of the men came up and started shouting back at him.
"He came really close and said 'are you going to use them' and 'you shouldn't be waving them about' and something else I didn't hear," Mr Colclough told gardaí, the court heard. He said that Mr Nolan then grabbed him with his left hand while swinging his right arm up to hit him on the back of the head. Mr Colclough said he tried to push Mr Nolan away. "I kind of accidentally stabbed him."
He said: "I pushed him off me and the knife went into him."
Mr Colclough allegedly said Mr Nolan then stepped back saying "you stabbed me, you f***ing stabbed me". He did not think that Mr Nolan was seriously injured. He told gardaí that he thought he had only scratched him.
He said he had not realised how seriously Mr Nolan had been injured until he went back outside after washing the knife. He saw Mr Nolan on the ground and his friends pressing his chest. He told gardaí he had gone back into the house and phoned for an ambulance.
Det Sgt Dalton said Mr Colclough told gardaí: "I would like to apologise. I am sorry for all the trouble I caused to that man's family. It was an accident. I really, really didn't mean it."
The trial continues today.