MURPHY APPEALS OMAGH SENTENCE
Murphy appeals Omagh sentence
By Michael Brennan
THE 14-year sentence handed down to a man who supplied two mobile phones used in the Omagh bombing was sound, a court has heard.
Colm Murphy (51) from Ravensdale, Co Lough is appealing against his January 2002 conviction for conspiring to cause the explosion, which killed 29 people and injured more than 300 in 1998.
At the Court of Criminal Appeal in Dublin, senior counsel for the State Peter Charleton yesterday rejected allegations from Murphy's lawyers that his right to silence had been flagrantly disregarded when it was used as part of the corroborative evidence against him.
Mr Charleton said Murphy had provided his version of events through his lawyers but had not taken to the stand to subject it to cross-examination.
Murphy had denied making any admission during police interviews in February 1999 about lending his mobile phone to known republicans, knowing it would be used for moving bombs.
Mr Charleton said the officers who conducted the interviews had taken the stand and had been challenged by Murphy's defence team.
Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns, presiding, asked Mr Charleton how the court should view the perjured evidence of two Gardai.
The officers were found to have altered a page of Murphy's statement and to have lied about doing so in court. Mr Charleton acknowledged that neither officer had provided an explanation for what they did.
But he said the court had reacted by increasing the burden of proof on the prosecution and "we have to be even more careful than usual as regards the credibility of witnesses".
Judgment on the appeal will be delivered at a later date.
By Michael Brennan
THE 14-year sentence handed down to a man who supplied two mobile phones used in the Omagh bombing was sound, a court has heard.
Colm Murphy (51) from Ravensdale, Co Lough is appealing against his January 2002 conviction for conspiring to cause the explosion, which killed 29 people and injured more than 300 in 1998.
At the Court of Criminal Appeal in Dublin, senior counsel for the State Peter Charleton yesterday rejected allegations from Murphy's lawyers that his right to silence had been flagrantly disregarded when it was used as part of the corroborative evidence against him.
Mr Charleton said Murphy had provided his version of events through his lawyers but had not taken to the stand to subject it to cross-examination.
Murphy had denied making any admission during police interviews in February 1999 about lending his mobile phone to known republicans, knowing it would be used for moving bombs.
Mr Charleton said the officers who conducted the interviews had taken the stand and had been challenged by Murphy's defence team.
Mr Justice Nicholas Kearns, presiding, asked Mr Charleton how the court should view the perjured evidence of two Gardai.
The officers were found to have altered a page of Murphy's statement and to have lied about doing so in court. Mr Charleton acknowledged that neither officer had provided an explanation for what they did.
But he said the court had reacted by increasing the burden of proof on the prosecution and "we have to be even more careful than usual as regards the credibility of witnesses".
Judgment on the appeal will be delivered at a later date.
Further Information
Publisher: BELFAST TELEGRAPH
Ref: BT/0948
Published Date: 10-Dec-04
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