A woman whose husband is on trial for her murder claimed she had been assaulted less than two weeks before she disappeared a Central Criminal Court jury has heard.
Bus driver, John O'Brien (41) with an address in Ballinakill Downs, Co Waterford denies murdering 35-year-old Meg Walsh on a date between 1st October 2006 and 15 October 2006.
GP, Dr Bernadette O'Leary told prosecuting counsel Mr Denis Vaughan Buckley SC that Ms Walsh visited her practice on the morning of September 22nd 2006 and told her she had been assaulted two days previously.
Dr O'Leary said Ms Walsh had fresh bruising and swelling on both her right and left hands and also to her right shoulder. She seemed very distressed and Dr O'Leary said she advised her to contact the gardai.
Ms Walsh was reported missing by colleagues when she failed to turn up for work on October 2nd 2006 after a night out at the Woodland Hotel in Waterford.
Ms Walsh's car was later found on October 4th in the car park of a pub at Ardkeen, and her body was later discovered on October 15th in the River Suir near Thomas Meagher Quay in Waterford city.
After a postmortem, gardaí opened a murder investigation.
Mr O'Brien was charged with his wife's murder on June 22nd 2007. His trial is expected to last four weeks.