A MAN has pleaded guilty to impeding the investigation into the murder of a mother of two in Wexford last year.
Ruslanas Mineikas (26), of Goodtide Harbour, Wexford town, pleaded guilty to disposing of and attempting to destroy the body of 30-year-old Rebecca French on October 9th, 2009, with intent to impede the investigation of another person, knowing or believing that person to be guilty of her murder.
He is one of two Lithuanian men who had been on trial at the Central Criminal Court since last week charged with murdering Ms French. He and Ricardas Dilys (28) of the same address pleaded not guilty to her murder on that date. The trial heard that firefighters found her body that afternoon as they put out a blaze in her car about two kilometres away from a house in Ard Na Dara, Clonard, where the prosecution alleges she was murdered. She died of blunt force trauma to the head.
The jury returned to court yesterday after a number of days of legal argument in their absence. Conor Devally SC, defending Mineikas, asked for his client to be rearraigned on a new count. Mineikas then stood and pleaded guilty to the lesser charge.
Mr Justice Barry White remanded him in custody until the end of November and he was led from the courtroom by prison officers. The trial of Mr Dilys then continued. A detective led Ms French’s mother to the witness box, where she wept as she took the oath as did members of her family at the back of the court. She testified that on the day after her daughter’s body was found, she gave a saliva sample to gardaí.
Forensic scientist Dr Diane Daly said she used the DNA from this sample to establish the identity of the burned remains found in the car as being those of her daughter.
Dr Daly also said the victim’s DNA profile was present in blood found at the house in Ard Na Dara where Mineikas and Mr Dilys were arrested shortly after the body’s discovery.
This blood was found on stools and two golf clubs in the living room and slabs on the back patio. The trial continues.