Taxi driver who was stabbed to death also suffered 30 injuries to head, arms, chest and legs, trial hears
A TAXI driver who was stabbed to death also suffered three blunt force injuries to his head and 30 other minor injuries to his head, arms, chest and legs, a pathologist has told a murder trial.
Deputy State Pathologist Dr Michael Curtis also said that an account given by the accused in which he said he was kneeling and using the knife with a “backhanded” motion would account for the fatal injuries sustained by the deceased.
Joseph Hillen (24), of Glendesha Road, Forkhill, Co Armagh, has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Martin Mulligan (53) at Carnmore, Balriggan, Dundalk, Co Louth, on September 28, 2015.
The trial heard on Tuesday that the accused admits stabbing Mr Mulligan, but told gardaí he did it to protect himself.
Dr Curtis told prosecuting counsel Patrick Treacy SC that he examined Mr Mulligan’s body at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda on the day he died.
He found three cuts to the top of the head, caused by a blunt object. These injuries, he said, had not damaged the skull and there was no evidence of injury to the brain, although they could have caused concussion.
In voluntary statements given to gardaí, Mr Hillen said that his friend, who cannot be named, struck the deceased with a sewer rod before the stabbing.
Dr Curtis said a sewer rod could account for the injuries to the head and he noted that the light weight of such an object could explain why the skin was lacerated but the skull was not injured.
Dr Curtis also identified two knife wounds as the cause of death. One knife wound to the lower abdomen went to a depth of 22.5cm and severed the abdominal aorta – the main artery in the body. The second stab wound went through the thigh, slicing the quadriceps muscle and severing the femoral artery.
He described it as a “through and through wound” with the blade entering on the outside of the thigh and exiting on the inside of the leg.
Either wound, he said, would have caused Mr Mulligan to bleed to death within minutes.
The other 30 injuries, he said, were minor and would suggest Mr Mulligan was involved in a struggle. He said one bruise to the chest could have been caused by a punch but added that this was speculation.
Dermot McGeough, a friend of Mr Hillen, told Mr Treacy that he was with the accused on the day before the stabbing.
They drank some rum at Mr McGeough’s house, went to a pub for about one hour and then Mr Hillen drove Mr McGeough back home.
On the way they were chased by gardaí but Mr Hillen got away. The witness said he wasn’t happy about the Garda chase because he feared everyone in the car would lose their licence.
Mr McGeough had known the accused for about three years before this incident and said he had a lot of time for him.
The trial continues today.