The alibi witness of murder accused Joe O'Reilly told the jury in the Central Criminal Court yesterday that he could be wrong about seeing Mr O'Reilly in the Broadstone bus depot before 11am on the day of the murder.
The court had already heard evidence that Mr O'Reilly told gardaí he was with his co-worker Derek Quearney inspecting posters in the Broadstone depot that morning.
Mr Quearney was the first of two defence witnesses on the 18th day of the trial yesterday.
Asked by prosecution counsel Denis Vaughan Buckley SC, at the end of his evidence, whether he was aware Mr O'Reilly had been having an affair, Mr Quearney said: "I was, yes."
"He told me that if he was going out for the affair, would I cover for him." He said this meant he would tell callers that Mr O'Reilly was out of the office. He said Mr O'Reilly would similarly cover for him if he "went off early and stuff like that".
Before he finished his evidence, defence counsel Patrick Gageby asked him whether he had ever been prosecuted for withholding information. Mr Quearney replied: "never, I've never been in trouble before." He was also asked: "would you cover for anyone who had murdered?" He answered: "absolutely not".
Mr O'Reilly (35), Lambay View, Baldarragh, Naul, Co Dublin, has pleaded not guilty to murdering his 30-year-old wife and mother of two, Rachel O'Reilly, at the family home on October 4th, 2004.
At the end of the hearing yesterday Mr Justice Barry White told the jury the evidence was concluded but they still had to hear three speeches - from the prosecution, the defence and then his own charge.
It was likely they would be sent out to consider their verdict tomorrow lunchtime.
Earlier yesterday Mr Quearney (46), originally from Ballyfermot, Dublin, told defence counsel he spent 21 years in the army before joining the TDI advertising agency in 1998. This company merged with Viacom and he got to know Mr O'Reilly in 2002.
Mr Gageby asked Mr Quearney to recount his movements from 8am on the day of the murder.
Mr Quearney replied: "I met with Joe about 8am. We had arranged to go in and do an inspection in Broadstone bus depot. Joe headed on in. I had to stay back and issue posters to the lads in work." Asked what time he followed Mr O'Reilly into the depot, Mr Quearney said "about nine, or ten to nine or so". He said he drove his Citroen Xzara and that Mr O'Reilly used his Fiat Marea.
He arrived in the depot about 9.30 am.
After he parked his car in Broadstone, he said, "I rang Joe to see where he was. He said he was at the back of the pits. I got out of the car. I said I'd find him there." Before he did so, he said he went to report to the foreman. He inspected four or five buses.
Asked to give a "figure of time" he thought that was, he said: "approximately 10 to 10 or 10 o'clock." He said he met Mr O'Reilly at this stage and started another inspection. "Myself and Mr O'Reilly went away and inspected all the buses that were parked in the Phibsboro garage.
"When we were finished, I stepped back and I said I'd go down to Broadstone. There were approximately four or five buses there." After that, he said he went to the neighbouring Phibsboro bus garage where he met up with Mr O'Reilly for the second time.
Asked what time this was, he said, "maybe 10.30". They inspected the buses together before leaving at about 11.00am.
He said he first thought about the timing of his meeting with Mr O'Reilly when gardaí rang to say they were calling to his house on October 4th about 7pm. "I was thinking in my head and trying to get it straight in my head." Asked: "how did you feel when you were in custody?" he said, "shock, absolute shock. I just couldn't believe that I'd been arrested."
Answering further questions he said: "gardaí were showing me the phone evidence and saying, 'your phone was in certain areas when Joe's was bouncing off other masts on the northside'. As a result of that, I said it was very possible my timing was wrong.
"I don't understand how I could be wrong because I still remember that as the way we did it - the inspections."
He said gardaí told him there was a 30- or 40-minute time gap between the times he said he saw Mr O'Reilly. "I said it is possible but that is not the way I remember it. If there is a 30- or 40-minute absence, I can't explain how that 30- or 40-minute time gap elapsed."
Earlier, the court heard evidence from Mr Joseph O'Shea, who said he saw Mr O'Reilly outside the bus depot on a rainy day in October. Asked how he could help the jury, he said: "that I seen Joe O'Reilly at Broadstone depot one morning."
He said he couldn't remember what day it was or the date, "however I do know it was lashing rain fairly heavily."
Mr Vaughan Buckley told Mr O'Shea that the court had already heard evidence from an expert in the Met Office who said the day of the murder was "dry and sunny" in Dublin.
Mr O'Shea again insisted: "I know I seen him in Broadstone."