Men found not guilty of following Waterford woman (76) to her home and robbing her at gunpoint
The prosecution’s case was that the two men formed a plan whilst they observed the woman in Clonmel Credit Union, pictured.
Two men accused of following a woman in her seventies to her home after she withdrew money from her Credit Union account have been found not guilty by a jury.
The prosecution’s case was that the two men formed a plan whilst they observed the woman in the Credit Union, and decided to follow her home and rob her of the large sum of money she had just withdrawn.
Defence Counsel for the two accused men said that there was no doubt that an incident of burglary occurred, but that it was not their clients who committed it.
The incident occurred on the evening of February 22, 2019, after the woman travelled from her home in a townland near Kilmanahan, Co Waterford, to a Credit Union branch on Parnell Street in Clonmel.
Whilst inside, she withdrew €5,000.
CCTV footage showed that two men entered the Credit Union whilst the woman was withdrawing the money. They were John Paul McCarthy (42), with an address at 24 Pinewood Drive, Kilmacomma, Clonmel, and Christopher O’Riley (32), of 17 Brook Crescent, Clonmel.
The two men were also seen leaving the Credit Union shortly before the woman did. They were accused of driving a loop around Clonmel in a black Audi A4, and driving back to within close proximity of the Credit Union just as the woman was entering her parked car with the money. They were then alleged to have followed her home.
The Prosecution’s case was that Christopher O’Riley entered the property armed with a firearm or imitation firearm.
Whilst holding her husband at gunpoint, the woman said the intruder entered the room she was in and demanded money from her handbag.
She said she gave him €90 and that the man fled without any of the money she had withdrawn from her account earlier that evening.
A gardaí investigation commenced, identifying O’Riley and McCarthy as potential suspects.
(Expanded coverage of the case is available here)
Warrants were obtained by Gardaí and the homes of both McCarthy and O’Riley were searched.
Found in the boot of McCarthy’s car was a balaclava containing the DNA of Christopher O’Riley.
The pair were arrested and questioned.
Both men denied having any involvement in the burglary.
In John Paul McCarthy ‘s interview he admitted to owning the balaclava, saying that he uses it to wear underneath a motorcycle helmet.
He also said he had a prior knowledge of the complainant because he had rented a property from her son. He told gardaí that he had previously paid rent to the woman at her household.
When asked if he was aware that the complainant was withdrawing money in the Credit Union on the day in question, he said, “no, this is ridiculous, its bullsh*t”.
A central piece of evidence relied upon by the Defence was the colour of the balaclava worn by the intruder.
Both the complainant and her husband described the balaclava worn by the raider on the day of the burglary as being black.
The balaclava seized from within the car of John Paul McCarthy however was a dark green colour.
Another turning point in the trial was a comment which was made by the complainant whilst under cross examination, where she referred to a statement she provided to gardaí directly after the incident occurred in 2019, telling them that she noticed blonde hair protruding from the balaclava.
She was asked under cross examination how blonde hair could have been present when both the accused men have darker hair shades.
The complainant replied, “I must have made it up.”
Both the colour of the balaclava and this comment became key features of the defence’s case during the course of the trial.
Acting as Defence Counsel for the accused men were Paddy McCarthy SC and Brian O’Shea BL.
In his closing argument, Mr O’Shea said, “there’s no doubt there was a robbery, the issue is who committed the robbery.”
Mr. O’Shea outlined five points to prove the accused men’s innocence, including what he described as “narrowly focused” CCTV evidence, “unreliable” first hand evidence from the complainant, and physical exhibits which don’t place the accused at the scene of the crime.
Regarding the CCTV, Mr O’Shea said that the two men couldn’t have known that the complainant was withdrawing money at the Credit Union, and that elevated CCTV camera positions from behind the teller counter provide a very different view to limited sightlines the accused had on the ground.
A montage of CCTV footage was provided to the jury during the trial which showed the movements of the complainant and the accused whilst in the Credit Union and on Parnell Street.
Mr O’Shea said the editing of this montage was “misleading” for the jury.
Regarding the balaclava, Mr O’Shea said that it was found in the boot of McCarthy’s car along with other motorcycle gear, including a helmet, jacket and gloves.
He said: “Gardaí got so excited when they found the balaclava that they ignored other evidence” and that “they became blinded once they found the balaclava”.
He added that owning a balaclava for the purpose of wearing beneath a motorcycle helmet is “perfectly legitimate”.
Referring to the evidence provided by the woman whilst she was in the witness box, Mr O’Shea said she is not reliable enough to convict anyone.
He said that some of the evidence she gave whilst under cross-examination “was for the birds” and “a bit mad”.
After approximately two hours and 45 minutes of deliberation, the jury returned a verdict of not guilty for both of the accused men and they were free to leave.
