The wife of a man accused of murdering their 20-month-old son told the Central Criminal Court her husband "adored" their son and had never lost his temper with him.
The infant died from massive brain damage he suffered in his father's apartment in Clane, Co Kildare, in April 2001.
Mr Yusif Ali Abdi (30), originally from Somalia, with an address at The Elms, College Road, Clane, Co Kildare has pleaded not guilty to a charge of the murder of his 20-month-old son, Nathan Baraka Andrew Ali on April 17th, 2001, in the apartment at College Road, Clane. He came to Ireland in June 1997.
His wife and the infant's mother, Ms Amanda Bailey (29), Dundrum, Dublin, told the court that the couple met in a Dublin city-centre nightclub in May 1998, and married a year later. She said that everything was fine with their marriage and with Yusif until November 13th, 1999, on the North Circular Road, when he was involved in an altercation with gardaí.
She said her husband got 100 hours community service but after the incident, he began to think the gardaí were following him.
His "paranoia" was just in relation to the gardaí at the time.
By early 2001, he was "behaving erratically", Ms Bailey said. She left her husband first on February 21st, 2001, when she told him he was sick.
He did not like being told he was sick and "he hit me with a telephone", she said. Following that incident, a local GP, who had tried to see him, reported his behaviour to the gardaí and to the local hospital. In early March 2001, there was another incident and she left again, and although she visited her husband after that, she did not stay there. On Easter Monday 2001, she brought Nathan down to Clane to visit his father. Later, Yusif asked would she stay the night. She said she "had no fear" for either her or her son.
At around 4.20 a.m., she awoke when Yusif came into the bedroom and picked up Nathan. Ms Bailey followed but he had locked the living room door.
She heard three or four "thud" sounds. She looked in through the glass panel above the door and saw Nathan's arm. He was lying on the floor. Yusif was praying and she could see his prayer mat.
Nathan Ali was certified dead at 5.30 a.m. on April 17th, 2001. The State Pathologist, Dr John Harbison found he died of massive damage to the brain resulting from multiple impacts with a hard surface.
The trial continues today before Mr Justice Carney.