Ms Jules Thomas, the partner of Mr Ian Bailey who is suing newspapers for articles linking him to the murder of Ms Sophie Toscan du Plantier, had said he left her bed on the night of the killing and arrived back with a mark on his face the next morning, a court heard yesterday.
Mr Bailey rejected this version of events and maintained that he left his bed to write, as he frequently did, but never left the house.
The allegations were made on the fourth day of the trial at Cork Circuit Court before Judge Patrick J. Moran where Mr Bailey, a freelance journalist, was cross-examined by Mr Paul Gallagher SC, for the newspapers.
Two neighbours also claim they saw Mr Bailey burning material in his garden three days after the murder, the court heard, although Mr Bailey dismissed these claims.
Mr Bailey said he received marks to his face while cutting down a Christmas tree late on the morning on December 23rd, 1996, the day Ms Toscan du Plantier was murdered.
Reading a Garda statement from Ms Thomas about Mr Bailey's movements on the night of the murder, Mr Gallagher said: "Jules stated that he left the bed and arrived the next morning with a mark on his forehead."
Mr Bailey replied: "Is there a polite word for absolute nonsense? Did she say that? I wasn't aware that she had made that statement."
Mr Bailey said the statement was inaccurate and that he and Ms Thomas had expressed concern about "anomalies" and "distortions" in Garda statements which were attributed to them.
Mr Gallagher also questioned Mr Bailey about "omissions" in his statements to gardaí about his movements on the night of the murder.
Mr Bailey first said that he had gone to bed at 12.30 a.m. and did not leave the house all night.
However, a later statement included the detail that he left bed to do some writing in the middle of the night, Mr Gallagher said.
Questioned about these changes, Mr Bailey said he got up frequently to write.
"I had no need to tell them that I did get up to write. My honesty on this point has led to this.
"I was over-honest about it and it seems to have backlashed," he said.
Mr Bailey also told the court he received scratches to his head while cutting down a Christmas tree later that morning.
"Can pine needles, which fall off when you touch them, cause you to bleed?" Mr Gallagher asked. Mr Bailey said he had his sleeves rolled up when he cut down the tree and that his arms were "reddened" as a result for up to a week afterwards.
Statements from two neighbours who claim to have seen Mr Bailey burning material in his garden on St Stephen's Day, shortly after the murder, were also referred to in court.
Mr Gallagher said Ms Jackson, who lived around 100 yards from the house, saw smoke from a fire and that one of the Kennedys, other neighbours, saw Mr Bailey burning material, including a mattress, on a fire.
"That surprises me," Mr Bailey said. "I have no knowledge of that."
Mr Bailey said the last time he lit a fire at that time had been in October or November of 1996, and he had burned a mattress on that occasion.
He later added: "If anyone is saying they saw me washing boots or any of that fictional nonsense, that didn't happen."
Mr Bailey also reiterated that the first he heard of the murder was when he was told of it in sketchy detail from a local journalist at lunchtime on the day of the murder.
Yet, Mr Gallagher said, in the early afternoon he had driven halfway up the laneway of Ms Toscan du Plantier's house without knowing who had been killed, before stopping to talk to a neighbour, Ms Lyons, on the laneway.
Mr Bailey, however, said he had seen Ms Lyons at the junction of the road and she had told him about Garda activity at the house. The court also heard allegations that Mr Bailey had assaulted his former wife, Ms Sarah Limerick, following a dispute over the deeds of a house. Mr Bailey denied this.
Mr Gallagher said Mr Bailey had told a man originally from England and now living locally about having a row with Ms Limerick, blacking out, and then waking up as he tried to strangle her.
Mr Bailey said he was not very happy with the way the deeds of the house had been organised, but rejected any suggestion that he assaulted his former partner.
The case continues today.
