Court hears Kerry farmer told gardai noise of crow banger prompted fatal attack on neighbour

Michael Ferris, of Rattoo, Ballyduff, Co Kerry has pleaded not guilty at the Central Criminal Court in Tralee to a charge of the murder of John Anthony O’Mahony, aged 73, at Rattoo on April 4 last year.

The crow banger, the accused reportedly stated, "would wake the dead" and the noise had been going on for 30 years.

“Surely there was some other way to get around it,” arresting garda Det Sergeant John Heaslip had put it to Mr Ferris during an interview.

"Believe me, there wasn’t,” he allegedly replied. He just “snapped” on that morning, he also told the gardaí, in the memo of an interview, read to the court yesterday.

He parked his teleporter in order to block the road. He heard 'hooting' and knew it was Mr O’Mahony. He was not in the teleporter at the time as he was doing a few jobs

In an initial interview, in a neighbour's kitchen around 8am, the accused allegedly told Detective Sergeant Donal Horgan: 'I will tell ye what happened…'

'Anthony Mahony was going to be coming down the road with a crow banger. There is always a problem with him for years. It would wake the dead. I spoke to him years ago about it. Today, I blocked the road with a teleporter to stop him coming down. I parked it sideways. He started hooting. I was not in the teleporter. I sat up on the teleporter. I did not talk to him.

'No good talking to him. The pallet forks I had on it, I made for the car and drove into it.'

Answering Patrick McGrath SC, for the prosecution, Garda Michelle Redding said Mr Ferris appeared “calm” and answered her coherently when she took personal details at the Listowel station.

There was no difficulty with him, she told defence counsel Brendan Grehan, SC.

Mr Grehan put it to her: 'He was a gentleman in every regard'. She replied: “On that morning yes.”

Det Garda Paul Walsh who interviewed Michael Ferris along with arresting sergeant Det John Heaslip said he asked Mr Ferris to explain the background.

'It was all over a crow banger, really,' he answered. He described the crow banger “a bit like a shotgun, only being a lot louder”.

Mr O'Mahony, the accused allegedly said, had the banger turned on about a week and it was 'very annoying'.

Det Heaslip asked what made that morning different and Mr Ferris replied: “I just snapped, I suppose.”

Further asked what he had said to himself that morning, Mr Ferris reportedly stated: “I had to do something about it, John.” He told how he blocked the road with his teleporter. “I went off doing a few jobs in the meantime.” Then he heard the car hooting and he partly guessed it was Mr O’Mahony and he returned to the teleporter.

Det Heaslip asked again: “What were you thinking, what was going through your mind?” to which Mr Ferris replied: 'Nothing good anyway, John.' He wanted just to drop the forks down on top of Anthony O’Mahony, he said.

Pressed further, he added: 'This banging business had been going on with the last 30 years and he was paying no heed to anyone when they asked him to turn it off.'

He was asked if he had 'wanted to do away with the deceased'.

“Are you saying you intended to kill him?” the detective asked, and Mr Ferris allegedly stated: “He had to be stopped and that was it.”

Towards the end of the garda interview memo read to the court, Mr Ferris agreed he was a placid easy going person, a private person and had not discussed the matter with his brother or anyone.

GP Dr Richard O'Reilly confirmed the death of Mr O’Mahony at 9.15am. He later attended Mr Ferris at Listowel Garda Station. The accused was his patient for 20 years and suffered high blood pressure. He had never treated Mr Ferris for any mental illness.

At the station, the doctor found Mr Ferris his normal self, and not suffering from psychosis. Mr Ferris was upset and his blood pressure was raised. He had been called to the station as Mr Ferris could not remember if he had taken his medication for 'low' blood pressure that morning or what the medication was, the court heard.

Cross-examined by defence counsel Brendan Grehan SC, Dr O’Reilly said there was no delirium, hallucination or voices which would indicate psychosis. He agreed the fact his patient could not remember if he had taken his medication and had, in fact, high blood pressure not low blood pressure indicated confusion.

The trial also heard from PSV and forensic collision inspector Garda James O’Brien the New Holland teleporter was usually used in construction. It had lifted the deceased's one-and-a-half tonne Peugeot car“clear off the ground”.

"It dropped the car and picked it up again a number of times,” Garda O’Brien said. Blood stains on pierce holes in the roof and bonnet indicated they were made after the body was pierced, he stated.

The trial continues before a jury of seven men and five women and presided over by Ms Justice Carmel Stewart.