A Latvian man whose body was found on a north Dublin farm was most likely moved after death, a court has heard.
Dublin Coroner’s Court heard that gardaí believe Deniss Timofejevs (22) was most likely struck by a van or car before his body was moved to give the impression that he had jumped from a mobile phone mast.
The body was found on April 2nd, 2013, on Balheary Farm in Swords, Co Dublin, three miles from Mr Timofejevs’ home.
He was found face down outside the fencing of the mast compound. He was last seen leaving home to go for a walk the previous evening. His mobile phone was found in a nearby river and his driver’s licence was missing.
It was initially thought he fell from the mast, however, when former deputy state pathologist Dr Khalid Jaber carried out the autopsy, he found Mr Timofejevs suffered “significant and multiple body injuries” due to “blunt force trauma” with “acceleration-deceleration force” involved.
Possible causes included a fall from a height, being struck by a vehicle or a physical assault by a third party.
The scene was sealed off and examined by forensic investigators following the autopsy.
Detective Sergeant John Grant said the area was checked for fingerprints, scuff marks and other indications that Mr Timofejevs had climbed the mast but they found no evidence he had been inside the mast compound or on the structure.
“To make that leap to where Deniss was found, a world class athlete could not do it,” he said.
There was no evidence that he was dragged to where he was found, he told the jury, but he was short and could have been carried over someone’s shoulder. The presumption is that he was moved “to make it look like he had fallen from the mast”, he added.
Expert advice was sought from Professor Michael Gilchrist, head of school at the Department of Engineering at UCD, who concluded that, given where the body was found, it is "highly improbable" that Mr Timofejevs fell or jumped from the tower.
The court also heard from farm owner Richard Gleeson that to get to the spot where he found the deceased would mean crossing through a farmyard, various gates and electric fences and that “you would have to know where to go”.
Detective Inspector Tony Howard said gardaí believe that “on the balance of probabilities” Mr Timofejevs’s death is a homicide.
“We believe he was possibly struck by a vehicle from behind and transferred to the scene. We believe that he was probably placed at the scene to look like he jumped,” he said.
Mr Timofejevs’ clothing was “remarkably clean” and there is “no evidence to suggest that he was assaulted”, he said. He appealed for anyone with information that may assist the investigation to come forward.
Addressing the coroner via an interpreter from the body of the court, the dead man's step-mother Inara Timofejeva said that the family are "certain it was murder but not certain whether it was pre-meditated or not".
Coroner Dr Brian Farrell instructed the jury it was not possible to return a verdict of unlawful killing because this had not been established “beyond a reasonable doubt”.
The jury returned an open verdict and recommended that CCTV be considered for mobile phone masts.