RUC officer Mr John Torney, accused of murdering his wife and children, spoke of their deaths as a "bad dream" hours after the three were shot.
Mr Torney (40), denies killing his wife Linda Torney (33), son John jnr (13), and daughter Emma (10), because of his love for fellow RUC officer Ms Ailsa Millar. His wife and children were discovered - each with a single gunshot to the head - at their home at Cookstown, Co Tyrone, in September 1994.
A detective told Belfast Crown Court yesterday that Torney said to him: "This is a bad dream, isn't it?"
The defence says John Torney jnr killed his mother and sister before turning his father's revolver on himself because of an argument over a pet. The trial, in its second week, continues.