A man accused of murdering his parents gestured towards his bed where they lay and said to his brother, "look what I've done", a jury in the Central Criminal Court heard yesterday. Mr Martin Doherty (27), St Lelia Street, Limerick, has denied that on September 21st, 1998, he murdered retired Garda William Doherty (58) and his wife Teresa (50) at their home in Monadreen, Thurles, Co Tipperary.
Mr Colin Doherty told the court that on the day of the killings he had tried to get into his home without success. He said his brother Martin was in the house but had refused to open the door and instead called to him through open windows in the bungalow.
Using a childhood name, his brother called "Colly, Colly, come and look in my room, or in my window," Mr Doherty said. His tone was "calm and relaxed but certain", he said. "He was enticing me to go towards the window."
Approaching from the darkness outside, Mr Doherty said he could clearly see his brother in the bedroom as the lights were on. "He moved to the centre of the room and gestured to the corner. He stepped to the right and I could clearly see my parents lying dead. I recognised what had happened and I shouted `You bastard', and he said, `Yeah, that's right'." Mr Patrick Gageby SC, prosecuting, told the jury the case was "gruesome" and "unpleasant".
He said Mr and Mrs Doherty had lived in their bungalow in Thurles with one of their three sons. On the day of the killings, Martin had travelled to Limerick and back where he had purchased a large kitchen knife. Reading from a statement given to gardai, Mr Gageby said Doherty said when he went into his old bedroom, his father was lying on the bed listening to the radio and gave him a "strange look".
"When he saw the knife he knew he was going to die. I stabbed him in the arms and belly and anywhere I could get him. [When Mrs Doherty came into the room] I stabbed her in the belly and anywhere I could get her. It was the best night of my life and I'm glad I did it," the statement read.
After killing his parents, the statement said Martin Doherty washed, changed his clothes, had a cup of tea and a cheese sandwich and later inflicted further injuries on the probably dead couple.
Colin Doherty arrived at the house some time later and tried to get in. The trial before Mr Justice Murphy and a jury continues.