Boy claimed co-accused asked him to call for Ana Kriégel, trial hears

A boy accused of the murder of Ana Kriégel told gardaí he was repeatedly asked by his friend and co-accused to call for her on his behalf on the day she went missing

The jury in the trial of the two 14-year-old boys accused of Ana's murder has started watching videos of the five interviews detectives conducted with Boy B starting on May 24th, 2018, 10 days after her body was found in an abandoned house in Lucan, Co Dublin.

Det Garda Donal Daly and Det Garda Damien Gannon began interviewing one of the accused, Boy B at 10.26am in the company of his mother and solicitor.

Gardaí began by confirming if Boy B knew what certain terms like arrest and detention mean. They then asked him if he knew the difference between good and bad. “Good would be giving a homeless man money and bad would be taking money from homeless man,” the boy replied.

Asked about his understanding of the truth, the boy said: “Truth would be doing something bad and telling what happened exactly happened in the story. But if you tell a lie it would be telling a fake story like either you weren’t there or you weren’t present.”

Det Garda Gannon told the boy: “We’re talking to you and we’re going to listen to you. Not your solicitor or your mother. It’s you we will be speaking to.”

He said told the boy it was his “opportunity to tell the truth”.

The boy picked out several locations from an aerial photograph shown to him. He pointed gardaí to Ana’s house, St Catherine’s Park and a building he knew as “the abandoned house”.

Exploring

He said he had been to this house “once before” while he was out “exploring” with Boy A and other friends the previous year.

Boy B described his movements on May 14th. He said Boy A called to his house after school and they chatted in his room. “Around this time was when he asked me to call for Ana Kriégel,” Boy B told gardaí. “At first I said no but then he started saying please, please, please. At last I agreed.”

It is the prosecution case that Boy B, lured Ana from her home at 5pm on May 14th, 2018 on the pretence of meeting Boy A, who Ana was “interested” in. Boy A then allegedly violently sexually assaulted and murdered her in the derelict farmhouse as Boy B watched.

Boy A has pleaded not guilty to the murder and sexual assault “involving serious violence” of Ana Kriégel on May 14th, 2018, at Glenwood House, Laraghcon, Clonee Road, Lucan in Dublin.

Boy B has pleaded not guilty to the murder of the girl on the same date.

The accused were 13 at the time of the alleged offence and are 14 now.

Earlier on Monday afternoon, the jury heard insulation tape of the same brand found around Ana’s neck was found in the home of Boy B.

The trial heard gardaí searched the home of Boy B on May 24th, a week after Ana was allegedly murdered and left in a abandoned farmhouse in Lucan. Her body was found with a long piece of Tescon brand insulation tape partially wrapped around her neck.

Sergeant Ronan Dunne said he was instructed by the senior investigator, Inspector Mark O’Neill, to conduct a search of Boy B’s family home. He said he was told to carry out the search with “utmost discretion”.

Rental cars were used instead of garda cars and the search team wore plain clothes.

A number of electronic items were taken for analysis from the main house. Gardaí also searched a shed in the back garden.

Sgt Dunne said Boy B’s father informed him it was used as a tool shed and his son also used it to “make things”.

Gardaí seized a roll of Tescon tape from the shed. Boy B’s father told gardaí it was specialised insulation tape which he had purchased for €35 some months ago. He said he could not remember where he bought it.

Detective Garda Damien O’Reilly showed one of the items made by the boy to the court. He told Damien Colgan SC, defending Boy B, that Tescon tape appeared to have been used in its construction.

Semen staining

Earlier on Monday the trial heard an analysis of semen staining found on Ana’s top provided a match to the DNA of a Boy A.

Marce Lee-Gorman of Forensic Science Ireland said she found semen in two areas of a black strap top which was found near the 14-year-old girl's body in a derelict farmhouse on May 17th, 2018, three days after she went missing.

She analysed the two areas and found DNA from skin cells and semen. The DNA matched Boy A and Ana. There was also DNA from a third unidentified source.

Ms Lee-Gorman told Brendan Grehan SC, prosecuting, she considered two possibilities: first that the DNA was from Ana, Boy A and a third person or that it was from three unidentified persons.

She judged that the first possibility is statistically “1,000 million” times more likely than the second.

There were several areas of damage to Ana’s top, the witness said. Force would have been required to cause this damage and the top cannot be worn in its current condition.

The areas of damage were analysed for skin cells belonging to someone other than Ana. Cells belonging to a male were found but it was not possible to determine their source, the court heard.

She also outlined damage to a bra found at the scene. The front strap was torn apart, Ms Lee-Gorman said.

That fabric is made from sturdy material, she said. “It would take a lot of manipulation and pulling and tugging to separate it. It was completely torn.”

The hooks at the back were also stretched out and bent. A male DNA profile was found on the garment but its source could not be determined.

DNA from an unidentified male was also found on Ana’s other underclothes, the witness said but its source could not be determined.

No semen was found on the other garments. These items were also undamaged “aside from normal wear and tear.”

The trial continues before Mr Justice Paul McDermott and a jury of eight men and four women.