A FRIEND of a man who died following an altercation on the way home from the pub has told a jury that he could see his friend's intestines protruding from a bad stab wound to his right side immediately after the incident.
Dane Pearse (21), Londonbridge Drive, Irishtown, Dublin, has pleaded not guilty at the Central Criminal Court to murdering Mark Spellman at Londonbridge Road, Irishtown, on August 4th, 2007.
Oisín Hoctor told Isobel Kennedy SC, prosecuting, that he, Mr Spellman and another friend had been at a Google work party in the 51 pub on Haddington Road. They left the pub at closing time and decided to go back to Mr Spellman's home in Sandymount to drink and play computer games.
He said they were in "good, jovial form" and that Mr Spellman was walking slightly ahead of him along Londonbridge Road. Mr Hoctor remembered seeing a couple some distance away.
He said "all of a sudden", a gap had opened up and Mr Spellman was 15 metres ahead of his friends, approaching the corner of Londonbridge Drive. Mr Hoctor heard shouting and swearing, so caught up with his friend.
He saw a man and a woman around the corner and said the man was acting angrily towards Mr Spellman.
Mr Hoctor told the court the man ran at Mr Spellman who stuck his foot into the air. Mr Hoctor said the man ran into Mr Spellman's foot which caught him in the chest and caused him to fall back on his rear end.
Mr Hoctor said the man was angry and there was "a lot of verbals going on". The witness said Mr Spellman offered to shake the man's hand, but the man replied "No, I've shook your hand already."
The man and woman left and the three friends continued to walk along Londonbridge Road.
They then heard shouting and turned to see the same man running towards them. Mr Hoctor said he saw a bat in one of the man's hands and another weapon in the other. He said he ran at Mr Spellman. The pair came together and went into a garden of a house.
Mr Hoctor struggled to open the gate to the garden and said the man brushed out past him with what he thought was an eight-inch-bladed knife with blood on it.
He found Mr Spellman lying on his back with a lot of blood and said he could see his friend's intestines protruding.
The hearing continues before Mr Justice Paul Carney and a jury.