A former British soldier has denied he told gardaí in 1997 that he and another man were thinking of going down to journalist Ian Bailey’s house to ask him to “give himself up”.
At the High Court on Thursday, Paul O'Higgins SC, for the State, said Det Garda Jim Fitzgerald will give evidence he met Martin Graham walking a dog near Russell Barrett's house outside Skibbereen. He will say this was where Mr Bailey had gone on the night of February 10th/11th 1997 after he was released following his first arrest by gardaí in connection with the murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier.
Counsel said the evidence would be Mr Bailey was in Mr Barrett’s house until February 12th 1997 Counsel said Det Fitzgerald will say, when he met Mr Graham afterwards walking the dog, that Mr Graham had said words to the effect, after all that happened in the house, Mr Barrett thinks Ian is guilty too and they were thinking of going down and asking him to give himself up.
Mr Graham, who has told the jury he overheard conversations between Mr Bailey and others while Mr Bailey was in Mr Barrett’s house, said that was “rubbish” and he and Mr Barrett “never colluded in anything at all”.
He was being cross-examined in the continuing action by Mr Bailey against the Garda Commissioner and State who deny all his claims, including wrongful arrest and conspiracy, over the conduct of the investigation into the murder of Ms Toscan du Plantier, whose body was found near Toormore, Schull, on December 23rd 1996.
Earlier yesterday, Mr Graham said he had a mental breakdown while serving with the British Army in Northern Ireland between 1980 and 1982 and is still suffering from that. He said he could not remember events of 10 and 20 years ago but could recall events in west Cork in 1997 because he had spent 18 years "hiding from it".
Mr O’Higgins said gardaí will testify Mr Graham told them Mr Bailey spoke to him on St Patrick’s Day 1997 about the murder of Ms Toscan du Plantier and had said he knew the exact time of her death.
Mr Graham said that was not the case, he had been dropped off by gardaí between 500m and 1000m from Mr Bailey’s home near Schull that day and walked round to the house but Mr Bailey would not let him in.
When told gardaí would say he rang them on March 11th saying he wanted to go and ask Mr Bailey to give himself up, Mr Graham said it was the gardaí who asked him to go out to Mr Bailey’s house and he himself would not have suggested anything “so preposterous”.
Asked what he wanted out of this, Mr Graham said he was helping the gardaí because they asked him to. Asked was he interested in money, he said he had a “vague interest in money, purely to survive”
When Mr O’Higgins said gardaí would deny Mr Graham’s claim they gave him quantities of cannabis, Mr Graham said he was given cannabis, including about 7ozs when going to a music festival in Kilcrohane in west Cork in March 1997.
Asked what that was worth, he said about “50 bucks” an ounce. When counsel said he was told it was worth more, Mr Graham said: “You’re being ripped off.” He knew people who grew their own and most people shared what they had, he added.
He said he saw Mr Bailey briefly at Kilcrohane. When asked if Mr Bailey had asked him if he had made a statement, Mr Graham said Mr Bailey did ask him that at one point but he could not say when, it could have been when he went to his house on St Patrick’s Day.
Mr Graham agreed he had signed two statements, dated February 25th 1997 and April 19th 1997, concerning Mr Bailey’s visit to Mr Barrett’s house. He said those were not read over to him at the time and he had just looked at some of the contents.
Asked were the contents of the February statement accurate, he said he was not disputing anything. He said he was being “lead all the way through the whole thing” and doubted whether the statement incorporated his entire conversation with the gardaí.
Mr Graham was asked about references in the April statement to Mr Bailey talking about the murder and saying he saw a “dark cloud” over the house where Sophie had been staying. Mr Graham said what Mr Bailey had said was that he was told people were saying he had said such things. “Everything is out of context,” he said.
Mr Graham said he told the police, when Mr Bailey was in Mr Barrett’s house, that Mr Bailey was stressed and panicking, watching media reports, and saying this person says I’ve done this and that. He felt he was not getting “a fair crack”, Mr Graham said.
Counsel said the Garda evidence would be that Mr Graham’s discussion of the house events with a particular person lead to the gardaí calling to Mr Barrett’s house and being especially interested in talking to Mr Graham. Mr Graham agreed he had later met Det Garda Fitzgerald and Det Garda Liam Leahy and they discussed matters in a car journey to and from Lough Hyne.
The February 25th 1997 statement was based on what he told gardaí during the Lough Hyne encounter and was not dictated by him on February 25th, he said. The gardaí told him the statement was what he had said and he trusted them. He was working with the two detectives as a team, he said.
“Their plan was I would get to know Mr Bailey better so he would have confidence in me and maybe divulge things.”
The case continues.
