Latest news with #GrattanStreet
BreakingNews.ie
27-05-2025
- General
- BreakingNews.ie
Jury begin deliberating in trial of Richard Satchwell
The jury in the trial of Richard Satchwell, who denies murdering his wife before hiding her remains beneath their Cork home, have this afternoon retired to consider their verdict. Before sending the jury of five men and seven women out to begin their deliberations at 3.05pm on Tuesday, presiding judge Mr Justice Paul McDermott asked them to consider all the evidence in the case. He said if he had omitted any piece of evidence, they should "go on what's important" to them. Advertisement The judge had told the panel that there are three verdicts they can return in relation to the murder charge against Mr Satchwell, namely, guilty of murder, not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter or not guilty. He asked them to be unanimous in their verdict. Mr Justice McDermott told the jurors that there were two routes to the verdict of not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter; on the basis that they were satisfied that there had been an unlawful killing but that Mr Satchwell did not have an intention to kill Tina or cause her serious injury, and also on the basis of partial self defence. The judge began charging the jury around midday on Monday in the Central Criminal Court trial of Mr Satchwell (58), who has pleaded not guilty to murdering his 45-year-old wife Tina Satchwell - nee Dingivan - at their home address at Grattan Street, Youghal, Co Cork between March 19th and March 20th, 2017, both dates inclusive. Mr Justice McDermott concluded his charge this afternoon to the 12 jurors, having told them on Monday that they could consider the issue of self-defence. Advertisement The judge said the onus lay on the prosecution to prove that Mr Satchwell was not acting in self-defence. He said a scenario had been presented to the jury that the accused was attacked by Ms Satchwell and had sought to defend himself in the manner described in his interviews with gardaí. He said if the jury decided the force used by Mr Satchwell was reasonable in the circumstances as he honestly believed them to be, then they must acquit him of murder and manslaughter and return a verdict of not guilty. He said if Mr Satchwell honestly believed he used no more force than was reasonably necessary, but the degree of force used was not what a reasonable person would have used, then he was not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter. He said if self-defence didn't apply, then they could find the accused guilty of murder provided they were satisfied he intended to kill or cause serious injury. Advertisement The trial has heard that on March 24th, 2017, Mr Satchwell told gardaí that his wife, Tina, had left their home four days earlier but that he had no concerns over her welfare, feeling she had left due to a deterioration in their relationship. The accused formally reported Ms Satchwell missing the following May, but her body was not discovered for over six years, when gardaí in October 2023, conducting "an invasive search" of the Satchwell home, found her decomposed remains in a grave that had been dug almost one metre deep underneath the stairs. When re-arrested on suspicion of Tina's murder after her body was removed from their Cork home, Mr Satchwell told gardaí that his wife "flew" at him with a chisel, that he fell backwards against the floor and described her death after he said he held her off by the belt of her bathrobe at her neck. The Assistant State Pathologist has told the trial that Tina's cause of death cannot be determined due to the skeletal nature of her remains. Advertisement Last Friday in her closing speech, Gerardine Small SC, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, told the jury that Mr Satchwell's narrative of how his wife died after he held her off by the belt of her bathrobe was "absolutely farcical" and had "more holes in it than a block of Swiss cheese". Ms Small submitted that the British truck driver had woven "a web of deceit" and continued his "fabricated narrative" over the years. Counsel said Mr Satchwell's objective from the very outset was "always to put everyone off the scent" and that this was done because he had murdered Tina. In his closing address, defence counsel Brendan Grehan SC told the jurors that there was no doubt Mr Satchwell was guilty, but asked the jurors what exactly he was guilty of. He argued that although the accused had lied "to the people of Ireland", the lies do not make him a murderer, or relieve the prosecution of the burden of proving the ingredients of murder.
BreakingNews.ie
20-05-2025
- BreakingNews.ie
Tina Satchwell's cause of death unclear due to skeletal nature of remains, court hears
Tina Satchwell's cause of death could not be determined due to the skeletal nature of her remains after they were found buried beneath her Cork home, the Assistant State Pathologist has told the Richard Satchwell murder trial. The Central Criminal Court also heard today that a dressing gown belt had been knotted to the front of Tina's chest in a "very unusual position", which expert witness Dr Margaret Bolster said is very often used for carrying a body. Advertisement The trial has heard that on March 24th, 2017, Mr Satchwell told gardaí that his wife Tina had left their home four days earlier but that he had no concerns over her welfare, feeling she had left due to a deterioration in their relationship. The accused formally reported Ms Satchwell missing the following May, but her body was not discovered for over six years, when gardaí in October 2023, conducting "an invasive search" of the Satchwell home, found her decomposed remains in a grave that had been dug underneath the stairs. When re-arrested on suspicion of Tina's murder after her body was removed from their Cork home, Mr Satchwell told gardaí that his wife "flew" at him with a chisel, that he fell backwards against the floor and described her death after he said he held her off by the belt of her bathrobe at her neck. Postmortem Giving evidence today, Dr Bolster told Gerardine Small SC, prosecuting, that she went to Grattan Street in Youghal on October 12th, 2023, where the deceased's skeletal remains were uncovered from a hole under the stairs with a depth of approximately 62cms. Advertisement The witness said she conducted a postmortem on Ms Satchwell's remains on the evening of October 12th, which continued into the morning of October 13th in Cork city mortuary. Dr Bolster said the body was recovered in a St Bernard dressing gown in a size 14-16, and it had been wrapped in a soiled sheet and black plastic. She said a gold coloured purse labelled 'Playboy' had been removed from the left pocket of the dressing gown with cards in the name of Tina Satchwell inside. She said she had cut the belt of the dressing gown to remove it and it hadn't been previously cut. The belt extended over the left side of the neck, under the right shoulder and right arm, under the body and was then knotted on the front of the chest. Advertisement The witness said the dressing gown top had disintegrated, and multiple ribs and vertebrae had come apart through decomposition. The next layer of clothing underneath were pyjamas. She said the belt had not been threaded through the loops of the dressing gown and that the left-hand side of the belt was across the front of the thorax. Expert witness The expert witness testified that four pieces of glass were taken from the scalp and five from the rest of the body. There was also evidence that the head had been separated from the body through decomposition. Advertisement The witness pointed out that part of the body had been skeletonised, and she could not identify external marks and injuries due to this. She said an internal examination was not applicable as there were no remaining organs. Furthermore, the witness testified that there was no evidence of any fractures of the bones, including the hyoid bone in the neck. An X-ray of the hands was carried out and it showed no evidence of fractures. The witness said that, due to a very long postmortem interval, Ms Satchwell's cause of death could not be determined. "It could not be determined due to the skeletal nature of the remains," she concluded. Advertisement Dr Bolster said the significance of a dressing gown belt over the front of the neck was unclear. "It was in a very unusual position as there had been significant moving and wrapping of the body after death," she said. In cross-examination, Dr Bolster told Brendan Grehan SC, defending, that the body was found lying face down and had been wrapped in a soiled sheet like a bedsheet. The witness agreed with the defence counsel that underneath the sheet, the body was wearing a dressing gown with the belt knotted to the front of the chest, which seemed "quite tight or taught" around the torso. Reconstruction video A reconstruction video was shown to the jury as to how Dr Bolster recalled the belt around the remains of Ms Satchwell. Asked whether the belt appeared to be like "something used to carry the body", Dr Bolster said these were exactly her thoughts. "It's very difficult to move a deceased's body around, and very often I find ligatures are used to move a body from an area," she said. Mr Grehan put it to the witness that "someone would have put it on to assist in the leverage of a body. "Yes, to move it around," she replied. She couldn't say where the glass found on the body had come from. The witness told Mr Grehan that in manual strangulation or throttling cases, it is much more common to find fractures in the hyoid bones. She confirmed there was no evidence of trauma to any bones and no evidence of bruising insofar as she could examine what was left of the muscle. She agreed that one of the arms was folded up against the chest area as it lay, and that the other arm also flexed. In conclusion, Dr Bolster said she could "very clearly" see the belt had been knotted "at the front" of the body in a "very unusual position", which is "very often used for leverage of the deceased".
Irish Times
15-05-2025
- Irish Times
‘I want to remember Tina the way she was, not the way I made her': Richard Satchwell trial hears garda interview with accused
Richard Satchwell told gardaí that if they produced any photographs of his wife's body in interview, he would not look at them, informing detectives: 'I want to remember Tina the way she was, not the way I made her,' his trial has heard. The Central Criminal Court jury also heard on Thursday that gardaí told the murder accused his 'second story' about his Tina Satchwell 's death, where he said he held her off by the belt of her bathrobe after she attacked him, had 'come apart' and did not match up with the evidence. In his first interview with gardaí following his rearrest on October 12th, 2023 Mr Satchwell said that his wife Tina 'flew' at him with a chisel, that he had fallen backwards and described holding the belt of her bathrobe at her neck 'until she got heavier'. At the outset of a fourth interview on October 13th, 2023, gardaí told Mr Satchwell they were going to show him some photographs. The accused said: 'If it's of Tina's body, I am not going to look. I want to remember Tina the way she was, not the way I made her'. READ MORE Detective Sergeant David Noonan showed the accused a photograph of the sittingroom in his home on Grattan Street taken during an initial garda search in 2017. Gardaí asked which of the two brown couches he had put Tina on when she died. Mr Satchwell said his wife was laid out on 'the one without the tear' and he had since put that couch upstairs. Det Sgt Noonan then asked the accused: 'Where are the marks you said were on the wall?'. The officer was referring to plasterboard which Mr Satchwell told gardaí his wife was 'destroying' with a chisel moments before she 'flew' at him. The Det Sgt continued: 'You said the marks were still there and to go and have a look at them'. Mr Satchwell replied: 'I also said I can't remember, the marks weren't going all the way through the plasterboard and I never said that either.....I said it is there somewhere'. Det Sgt told the accused: 'When we start to produce evidence, people start to tailor or incorporate their story and try to make slight manoeuvres to make it suit. You said you were coming here and have nothing to lose, that's not true you have a lot to lose as the story you are telling is not making sense'. Mr Satchwell was questioned by officers about how he claimed his wife 'flew' or 'came at' him and he went 'off balance'. Det Sgt Noonan said: 'Every interview you have told us how violent she was, she flew off the handle, she could punch you, knock glasses off your face and you do nothing, you continue driving and don't even stop. How all of a sudden is she bent over with the chisel, you come in and say 'what you doing', next thing she flies at you and all of a sudden you are falling on to your back: can you see how it sounds?'. Mr Satchwell replied: 'I can see the way you want it to sound'. Det Sgt Noonan told the accused: 'This is your account. I'm not creating this account, these are not my words – they are your words, can you see from my perspective how it sounds?'. The accused replied: 'I can see it is your job to tear it apart and bury me'. Det Sgt Noonan continued: 'My job is to point out that what you are saying doesn't match up with the evidence. There are so many things you have said that don't add up and it's very important you know these things'. The trial continues this afternoon before Mr Justice Paul McDermott and a jury of five men and seven women. The Central Criminal Court has heard that on March 24th, 2017, Mr Satchwell told gardaí that his wife Tina had left their home four days earlier but that he had no concerns over her welfare, feeling she had left due to a deterioration in their relationship. The accused formally reported Ms Satchwell missing the following May but her body was not discovered for over six years, when gardaí in October 2023 conducting 'an invasive search' of the Satchwell's home found her decomposed remains in a grave that had been dug underneath the stairs. The trial has heard gardaí went with a search warrant to the accused's home on Grattan Street in Youghal on October 10th 2023, where they arrested him for the murder of Tina Satchwell on or about March 19th, 2017 and brought him to Cobh Garda station. An invasive search of Grattan Street was conducted simultaneously, with gardaí bringing in building equipment to excavate the couple's home. Mr Satchwell (58), with an address at Grattan Street, Youghal, Co Cork has pleaded not guilty to murdering his 45-year-old wife Tina Satchwell – née Dingivan – at that address between March 19th and March 20th, 2017, both dates inclusive.
