Morris tribunal:The disputed signature on a false confession to the murder of a Raphoe cattle dealer is consistent with that of the Donegal publican who denies he made a statement of admission while under arrest for murder a decade ago, two handwriting experts told the Morris tribunal.
Frank McBrearty jnr told the tribunal in October the document was a forgery and said if it was his signature, then either detectives "managed to get my signature on a piece of paper or they have copied it".
The tribunal has found that Richie Barron died in a hit-and- run vehicle collision and that the facts outlined in the disputed statement could not have occurred.
John Lynch, a retired Garda handwriting expert, examined 16 signatures belonging to Mr McBrearty jnr and said he "found significant similarities and no differences" between control samples and the disputed signature. "In my opinion Frank McBrearty jnr, the author of the other 16 signatures, wrote the signature on the questioned document," he said. "The signature was a normal, natural signature. There was no evidence of copying or forgery."
Handwriting expert James Nash was engaged by solicitors acting on behalf of Mr McBrearty jnr in 1997. He retired from the Garda in 1989, where he spent 10 years as head of the document section of the forensic bureau, to work as a handwriting consultant.
His first examination was of a photocopy. His finding was that it was Mr McBrearty jnr's signature, but he would prefer to examine the original document, which had now been provided. "In my opinion on the balance of probabilities, Frank Mc- Brearty wrote the questioned signatures," he said.