The man accused of murdering the journalist Veronica Guerin told gardai he got rid of the motorcycle and gun used in the killing, the Special Criminal Court heard yesterday.
Det Garda Gerard Dillon said Mr Paul Ward told him shortly after a visit from his girlfriend, Ms Vanessa Meehan, while in Garda custody, that it was planned that the two men involved in the killing would go to "his place".
"We had it planned after the job was done on Guerin they would come back to my place. I was to get rid of the gear."
Det Garda Dillon said he and Det Sgt Patrick Lynagh interviewed Mr Ward at Lucan Garda station on the night of October 17th, 1996.
Mr Ward told them Ms Meehan knew nothing about the shooting of Veronica Guerin and had not been in his house that day.
Asked what happened at his house on the day of the shooting, Mr Ward said two named men, who cannot be identified by order of the court, came to his house.
When asked what he meant by "gear", Mr Ward replied: "The gun and the bike. I got rid of them."
He was questioned about where the motorcycle and gun were but made no reply.
Det Garda Dillon said that when Mr Ward was asked who ordered the "hit" on Ms Guerin, he also made no reply.
When the name of a man, who cannot be identified by order of the court, was put to him for ordering the killing, he again made no reply.
Det Garda Dillon said Mr Ward made no reply when asked where the two men, suspected by Garda of being on the motorcycle and having taken part in the killing, were.
Det Sgt John Geraghty said he visited Mr Ward's house at Walkinstown Road on three occasions in July 1996. He met Ms Meehan on each occasion and left a message with her for Mr Ward to telephone him.
The sergeant said Mr Ward phoned him at the Lucan incident room on July 17th and told he had no information regarding the Guerin shooting.
Cross-examined by defence counsel Mr Barry White SC, the sergeant said he was aware that Mr Ward was part of a gang run by a named man, and from an early stage gardai had information that this gang was responsible for the Guerin murder.
The trial continues on Tuesday.