Murder trial hears victim hit with rock and robbed

A man accused of murder has told a trial that his co-accused hit a 66-year-old man on the back of the head with a rock, causing him to stop breathing, before robbing him.

Alan Vial of Drumanoo Head, Killybegs, County Donegal, and Nikita Burns from An Charraig, County Donegal, both deny the murder of Robert Wilkin on 25 June 2023.

The body of the County Tyrone man was found eight days later in the sea at the foot of the Slieve League cliffs.

Mr Vial, 39, told Dublin's Central Criminal Court on Monday that he lied during his police interviews and did not reveal what he now alleged 23-year-old Ms Burns had done because he was trying to protect her as he had "feelings for her".

The rock, which the court previously heard contained blood and hairs with DNA matching Mr Wilkin, who was also known as Robin, was found by gardaí (Irish police) near a viewing point at the top of the cliffs.

Mr Vial said he now accepted that when he left Mr Wilkin the pensioner was not breathing and that he drove to Slieve League "to get rid of the body".

He said he could not remember whose idea it was to put Mr Wilkin over the cliffs.

He said Ms Burns took money from the victim's pocket before they both carried him towards a fence.

"We got him up onto the fence and then we dropped him to the other side and he rolled from there off the edge of the cliff," Mr Vial said.

Mr Vial said he did not know Ms Burns was going to use a rock to strike Mr Wilkin before this and did not ask her or want her to hit him.

He said he did not encourage her to hit him and that he did not want Mr Wilkin, who he described as his friend, to die.

Mr Vial described himself as an alcoholic and said he met Robert Wilkin in a bar in May 2023.

After learning Mr Wilkin was living in his car, Mr Vial offered to let him live at his house on the condition he helped with work to the property.

He said there were occasions when Mr Wilkin demeaned him in public, such as slapping him on the back of the head and speaking down to him, but described their relationship as "pretty good".

He said they did "everything together for pretty much a month".

Mr Vial said he met Ms Burns for the first time in early June when she came with Mr Wilkin to Drumanoo Head for a weekend.

Mr Vial said she moved into the house with them and he began a sexual relationship with her.

The court heard Mr Vial, Ms Burns and Mr Wilkin had been drinking at various bars on the night of the alleged murder.

They got into a car together and Mr Vial said that Mr Wilkin was being aggressive towards him.

Mr Vial said Mr Wilkin told him and Ms Burns to get out of the car following an argument and while Ms Burns got out, Mr Vial refused.

He said Mr Wilkin then punched him three to four times in his face while they were both in the car.

Mr Vial said he then grabbed Mr Wilkin's wrists to prevent him striking him again.

He said at first he did not know what caused Mr Wilkin's head to strike his own, but after it happened again he saw Ms Burns go to the passenger-side door and strike Mr Wilkin on the back of the head with a rock.

He said Mr Wilkin then went limp and there was blood coming from a severe wound on the back of his head.

He said he did not do anything to stop the bleeding and believed Mr Wilkin was dead at that point.

Mr Vial said he then drove to Slieve League, but said he could not remember any conversation and could not say how they decided to go to the cliffs.

He said Ms Burns took money from Mr Wilkin's pocket, which they later used to buy cannabis.

He denied that this was a "robbery gone wrong" and said he had never intended to take money from Mr Wilkin.

Mr Vial said they returned to the scene twice to see if the body was visible or "if anyone had noticed anything".

He said they cleaned the car at Mr Vial's brother's home and later that day they crashed the car, resulting in Mr Vial later being arrested for drink-driving.

He accepted that he lied to gardaí in interviews when he said Mr Wilkin was alive when they left him at Slieve League.

He said he had been trying to "come up with a story that would cover Nikita and myself" during those interviews.

The trial continues.