A Kerry man told gardaí he threw his uncle's body down a well after his father had killed him with an iron bar, a murder trial jury heard yesterday.
The jury at the Central Criminal Court heard that Mr Eugene Daly told gardaí that his father Seán, who is now deceased, hit his uncle, Mr Patrick (Paddy) Daly, with an iron bar after the two of them had gone to his uncle's house to sort out "bad blood that started 30 years ago".
Det Supt John O'Mahony said Mr Daly made a statement at Killarney Garda station on February 8th, 1996, in which he said "there was bad blood between Paddy and ourselves".
"Dad said if he didn't agree with us he would finish him off," the accused said. He understood this meant his father would "kill him, waste him, rub him out".
Asked if he agreed with this, Mr Daly replied: "Yes, I know it's total madness."
Mr Daly (29), of Dooneen , Kilcummin, Killarney, has pleaded not guilty to the murder of his uncle, Mr Patrick Daly (69), at Dooneen on January 18th, 1996.
The prosecution has claimed the accused assisted in burying his uncle's body in the well after his father, Mr Seán Daly, struck him with an iron bar after a row over family land.
Det Supt O'Mahony said Mr Daly told gardaí that he and his father went into Paddy's house, and his father said to Paddy that he didn't like the way Paddy was "going on", and there would be trouble if he didn't stop fighting.
His uncle told them to "get lost" and leave him alone, and his father said: "I'll fix you."
Mr Daly said his father was in a temper. He saw his father picking up a brown bar from the tool room and he went up to Paddy who was facing away from him.
"Dad hit Paddy on the back of the head with the bar. Paddy slumped to the ground.
"Dad then hit him a few times when he was on the ground."
Asked if anything had been said, Mr Daly said: "Paddy just said 'what', startled like just before he got the first belt.
"He lay in a heap on the grass. There was blood trickling from his head.
"I went over to Paddy. I kicked him a number of times just to make sure he was dead," the accused added.
Mr Daly was asked when he knew his uncle was dead, and he replied: "I presumed when I was dragging him and there was no noise out of him."
He said his father then said to him to tidy up, and he dragged his uncle's body down to the well by the shoulders. "I lifted up the cover of the well and let him fall in head first."
Mr Daly said he cleaned up the blood with a rag and water and then cleaned blood from the yard with a brush.
He was in Paddy's house until 6 o'clock cleaning up.
The trial continues.