A CORK man living in London, confessed to a drinking friend that he had killed twin brothers in his Islington flat, the Old Bailey has been told. Mr David Dillon (38), of Copenhagen House, Copenhagen Street, Islington, has denied murdering twins Christopher and Anthony Lanford (38) early last year.
The corpses of the brothers lay undiscovered in the Regents Canal for a month, the jury heard on the first day of the trial.
Christopher Langford's body was first to surface on March 26th, 1996 and although he had suffered several fractures, a pathologist said his death was probably accidental. It was only when Anthony's body was found in a nearby stretch of the canal days later that police launched a double homicide investigation, prosecuting counsel Mr Timothy Langdale QC said.
Mr Dillon had been visited by Islington detectives a month before the corpses were found. Police went to his flat after receiving an anonymous note stating the brothers had been murdered there.
Although officers found signs of redecorating work, they left after Mr Dillon apparently satisfied their inquiries. However, after the bodies were found, a former drinking friend told police that Mr Dillon had confessed to the killings.
Mr Langdale said the court would hear that a "small but very important piece of scientific evidence" was found at Mr Dillon's address - blood and hair belonging to one of the twins.
Opening the case, Mr Langdale said Christopher Langford's body was found floating in the Regents Canal by a walker on March 26th. Eight days later, his brother's body was found in the water about 50 yards away.
The twins, brought up in the Bedford area, moved south and began living London in 1991, mainly in the Islington area, counsel said. "Each of the lives of these twin brothers revolved around drink and that was associated on occasion with drinking."
Mr Langdale said the twins - referred to by one witness in the case as street people" - would live with friends or sometimes", sleep rough. The brothers were said to live fairly independently of, one another. Similarly Mr Dillon "led a life in which drinking played a significant part."
"You won't be surprised to hear that the paths of the twins and Dillon crossed and there were occasions when they might be in his company, either out, or at his flat," Mr Langdale said.
The court heard that Christopher Langford's 90 per cent submerged body was spotted by a man living on a canal boat. According to a pathologist, "death was consistent with drowning and therefore it could have been an accident." Some injuries - including a fractured skull, ribs and left leg - might have been caused "by a fall prior to drowning", the post-mortem examination suggested.
However, when Anthony's body was discovered on April 3rd, wrapped in a blue blanket, the picture changed substantially.
A second pathologist found a "number of lacerations to Anthony's head and skull" with fractures of his skull, jaw and rib. "He, died as a result of injuries to his head and those injuries, in the opinion of the pathologist, were coincidental with having been caused with a heavy blunt object," counsel continued. That second pathologist came to the view that Christopher met his death in the same "violent manner".
Mr Langdale said the anonymous note had been received on February 27th. Police visited Mr Dillon's flat on March 1st. Officers found the flat had been recently painted and a number of floor tiles had been removed and, were "splattered with paint".
Counsel said that on Easter Monday last year a former friend of Mr Dillon, Mr Lawrence Walsh, went to Islington police station and told officers that Mr Dillon "confided that he had turned the twins over and dumped them in the canal".
The jury heard that according to Mr Walsh, Mr Dillon had spoken of going home to Ireland for St Patrick's Day after the police had initially visited his flat.
The trial continues.