The jury in the trial of a man and a woman accused of murdering a pensioner whose body was allegedly thrown off the Sliabh Liag cliffs in Donegal have been watching a CCTV montage of what the prosecution say are their movements on the night of the killing.
Nikita Burns (22) of Carrick, Co Donegal and Alan Vial (39) of Drumanoo Head, Killybegs, Co Donegal have pleaded not guilty to the murder of 66-year-old Robert ‘Robin’ Wilkin on June 25th, 2023 in Donegal. Mr Wilkin’s body was found one week later in the water below the Sliabh Liag cliffs.
Ms Burns has pleaded guilty to impeding the apprehension or prosecution of another person for an arrestable offence but the prosecution did not accept her plea.
A central part of the prosecution case is CCTV footage which the prosecution contend show the movements of the two accused with Mr Wilkin in a Volkswagen Passat on the night of June 24th 2023 and into the early hours of the following day.
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It is the State’s case that the three left McIntyre’s Bar in Dunkineely at about 1.30am and travelled in the Passat to Roshine. Bernard Condon SC, prosecuting, said in his opening address that this is most likely the place where Mr Wilkin was assaulted, although he said the accused gave different accounts.
After leaving the Roshine area, Mr Condon said in his opening speech that the car was seen on CCTV at 2.20am passing the ranger’s hut at Sliabh Liag and travelling towards the top of the cliffs. After about 38 minutes, the car came back down at which point the prosecution alleges Mr Wilkin had been put over the cliff.
Sergeant Ronan Gallagher on Thursday continued taking prosecution counsel Mr Condon through a montage of CCTV footage.
One of the clips shows a black Passat car reversing up at The Fleet Inn pub in Killybegs at 9.52pm on June 24th and Mr Vial can be seen getting into the front passenger seat of the vehicle.
The jury later saw the Passat car travelling in the direction of Killybegs in the early hours of June 25th at 1.34am and arriving at the Roshine Road at 1.46am.
The vehicle goes off camera around this time and doesn’t appear again until 2.01am.
The car arrives at the ranger’s hut and carpark at Sliabh Liag at 2.20am that morning and proceeds towards a gate, which is closed. The vehicle can be seen colliding with a cone on the road.
Sgt Gallagher said the car had to stop for a number of moments for someone to get out and open the gate. “You can see some shadows in the lights of the car,” he added.
The witness said the car moves off again and makes its way towards the summit passing a number of bends at 2.22am. He said the summit car park has no CCTV cameras and the car goes out of shot at 2.22am.
In the next clip at 2.58am, the car can be seen coming back and passing the Sliabh Liag visitor centre at 3.06am. The car then “journeys back” to Killybegs, said Mr Condon. It arrives on the main street in Killybegs at 3.49am.
At 5.33am that morning the jury saw the car arrive again at the carpark at Sliabh Liag.
The Sergeant said the car returns from the summit 22 minutes later at 5.55am passing the ranger’s hut and car park. The gate into the car park is left open and the car continues down, said the witness.
The witness said the vehicle continues in the direction of Mr Vial’s residence.
The car is seen returning again to the ranger’s hut and the car park at Sliabh Liag around 2.15pm on June 25th before heading back to the visitor centre around 2.32pm.
Under cross-examination, Sgt Gallagher agreed with Eoin Lawlor SC, for Ms Burns, that his job was to establish a timeline of movements and to follow the movements of a car at the conclusion of a night’s drinking. The Sergeant said he had tracked the movements of Mr Vial, Ms Burns and Mr Wilkin through four pubs beginning at 9.45pm until 1.30am on the night in question.
The Sergeant accepted that Ms Burns was seen on CCTV footage having nine drinks, of which three were doubles on the night. He agreed that Ms Burns could be seen giving Mr Wilkin a hug and a kiss on the cheek at Mac’s Bar in Dunkineely after midnight on June 25th.
The trial continues on Monday before before Mr Justice Paul McDermott and a jury of five men and seven women.
In his opening address, prosecuting barrister Mr Condon said the State’s case is that the two accused caused Mr Wilkin’s death having engaged in a joint enterprise with the intention to cause serious injury to the deceased.
Where two or more people set out on a criminal enterprise, Mr Condon told the jury each one is responsible in law for the actions of the other.
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