Accused says he ‘fought back’ when Paddy (90) hit him with walking stick
A MURDER accused told gardaí he “fought back” after a 90-year-old retired farmer, who was found beaten to death in his own home, had hit him with a walking stick and shovel.
The jury also heard that Ross Outram told gardaí he did not intend to murder Paddy Lyons or cause him serious harm when he went to his home looking for money.
Mr Outram’s garda interviews were read to the Central Criminal Court yesterday.
Mr Outram (28), of Ferryland, Waterford Road, Clonmel, Co Tipperary, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Mr Lyons at Loughleagh, Ballysaggart, Lismore, Co Waterford, at a time unknown between February 23 and 26, 2017.
A pathologist has given evidence that Mr Lyons suffered multiple blows to his head and neck from a blunt weapon, before his blood-smeared body was found slumped in his armchair at his home.
The jury has heard medical evidence that Mr Lyons suffered a “stiffness or fusion” of a shoulder during childbirth and could only keep it in one position.
Detective Garda Martin Keohane told prosecuting counsel John O’Kelly SC that he conducted the first four memos of interview with Mr Outram at Dungarvan garda station on February 27.
Mr Outram initially told gardaí he was at home watching television on the evening of February 23 and went to a bookmakers the following day. He said he lived with his alcoholic mother.
In his second interview, Mr Outram said he neither knew Mr Lyons nor where he lived. The accused also denied his maternal grandmother had a friend called Paddy from west Co Waterford and he would go to Ballysaggart when he was a child.
The accused told gardaí in his seventh interview that he could not remember what happened on the night as he was “back on drugs”, but said Mr Lyons was not dead when he left his home.
Mr Outram said he “figured” that if he went to Ballysaggart and took Mr Lyons’ money, then his mother would no longer be able to get money off him [the deceased] for drink.
“I knew that man a long time, my grandmother use to look after him. I was trying to do good as my mother kept wrecking my head, she keeps getting worse,” he said.
Mr Outram said he had taken 100 Xanax when he knocked on Mr Lyons’s door on the night of February 24.
The accused said he explained to Mr Lyons who he was and asked him for money but the deceased said he did not have any.
Mr Outram said the pensioner started to hit him with his walking stick and shovel but he had fought back. Mr Lyons told him to go outside and locked him out. However, Mr Outram insisted Mr Lyons was not dead when he left his house.
Mr Outram said the incident happened on a Friday night and he could not believe Mr Lyons was dead when it came on the news on the Sunday.
The accused later told gardai that he hit Mr Lyons with his walking stick which was “bendy” and had a “hook” on top of it.
Gardai put it to the accused that Mr Lyons had a lot of injuries to his head and asked him if he had any idea of how many times he had hit him. “No idea, I didn’t kill him in the house, he was alive when I was leaving. He put on his grey hat and locked me out,” replied Mr Outram. The trial continues.