An English journalist was engulfed in "a nightmare" following his arrest and questioning for the murder of French film-maker Ms Sophie Toscan du Plantier, the Cork Circuit Court was told today.
Mr Ian Bailey is suing seven newspapers for defamation for articles they published in the weeks and months following his arrest on January 10th 1997. He was questioned for 12 hours by the Garda Siochana in Bandon, Co Cork, on that date and was then released. No-one has ever been charged with the murder of Ms Toscan du Plantier.
Mr Bailey, dressed in a light grey suit, blue shirt and maroon tie, began giving his evidence in the case before a crowded court, containing over 20 journalists and about 50 members of the public.
He spoke in a low, hesitant voice as he described the days surrounding the death of Ms Toscan du Plantier, during which he was preparing for Christmas for himself, his partner and her daughters. He killed three turkeys and cut the top off a pine tree for a Christmas tree, resulting in scratches to his face and arms.
The court heard that the DPP had written to the family of the murdered woman last March saying that he had no intention at this time of prosecuting any person for the murder. However, the file remained open and this could change if new evidence came to light, according to the DPP.
The body of Ms Toscan du Plantier was found on December 23rd 1996 in a lane near her holiday home outside the west Cork town of Schull. She had been bludgeoned to death.
Her husband, Mr Daniel Toscan du Plantier, was a prominent film producer in France and a personal friend of the French president, Mr Jacques Chirac. An unprecedentedly intense Garda investigation failed to result in anyone being charged with the murder.
Mr Bailey was arrested on January 10th the following year, three weeks after the murder, and questioned for 12 hours. He lived three miles away, worked as a freelance journalist, and had covered the murder for a number of French, English and Irish publications.
Following his arrest, a number of newspapers published articles about him, including interviews with him, in which he acknowledged he was a suspect.
He is claiming that the articles were defamatory, and that many of the journalists concerned had inveigled their way into his confidence and then published damaging material about him and his partner, Ms Jules Thomas.