A BOY told garda interviewers that he heard schoolgirl Ana Kriegel scream after she and his co-accused went into the abandoned house, a trial heard.

Boy B then started crying during the interview and said that he ran away because he was scared and he thought Ana and Boy A had been attacked.

He thought that Boy A would be able to protect her, he said.

Boy B also told gardai his co-accused “wouldn’t do that” after he learned Ana’s blood had been found on his boots.

The two youths, aged 13 at the time, have pleaded not guilty before the Central Criminal Court to the murder of Ana Kriegel (14) at Glenwood House, Laraghcon, Clonee Road in Lucan on May 14 last year.

Boy A has also denied a charge of aggravated sexual assault.

On Wednesday, the jurors continued to watch video footage of interviews which gardai conducted with Boy B at Finglas Garda Station on May 24 and May 25, 2018.

Present during the first three interviews were Boy B, his mother, his solicitor David Powderly, Detective Garda Donal Daly and Detective Sergeant (now Inspector) Damien Gannon.

During the fourth and fifth interviews, Barry Powderly was Boy B’s solicitor.

At the start of the fourth interview, which began at 10.11am on May 25, 2018, Boy B said he wanted to clarify something.

Boy B told gardai he was going to re-tell the story as “what I told you yesterday was a lie”.

He said he did not meet Boy A in the spot in the park where he’d previously said he’d met him.

Boy B said he and Ana walked over towards the BMX track and he met Boy A near it.

Boy B said he let Ana talk to Boy A for a while, but he stayed back to give them some privacy to talk. He then got bored and left.

“That’s the truth”, he said.

Boy B told gardai he was “scared and nervous” when he first spoke to gardai investigating Ana’s disappearance and he couldn’t really remember where he met Boy A, so “I made it up”.

Once he did remember, Boy B said he couldn’t go back because he had already given a statement so he “kept to the story”.

Asked why the boys had arranged to meet at the BMX track, Boy B said he didn’t know.

The court heard the BMX track was close to the abandoned house where Ana’s body was found.

Asked by Insp Gannon if he had been in the abandoned house that day {May 14} Boy B said “on the day I wasn’t but I was before, yeah”.

During interview four, Boy B was shown some photographs, including one of Boy A’s boots. Gardai told Boy B there was blood spatter on the boots and it matched Ana’s DNA.

“No, No, [Boy A] wouldn’t do that”.

The court heard that blood spatter on Boy A’s boots meant he either assaulted Ana or was standing by when it happened.

Boy B said Boy A was one of his closest friends. “I don’t want to believe it was [Boy A]”.

Boy B was shown other photographs, including one of a rock found at the crime scene, which gardai said had Ana’s blood and hair on it.

Boy B responded: “Jesus Christ, it gets worse and worse.” and “this is crazy”.

He also told gardai: “I don’t know what happened. I wasn’t in the house.”

When shown a photograph of blue tape found at the crime scene, Boy B responded: “Holy shit, Oh my God, I gave [Boy A} tape a couple of weeks ago.”

Boy B said he had two rolls of the tape and he’d given one of them to Boy A, because he wanted to use it to make something.

Boy B again repeated that he wasn’t in the house.

During interview five, gardai told Boy B a witness had seen a boy going into a field near the abandoned house and they believed this boy was him.

“Ok, I did go into the field, but it was to look around”, he said, adding he didn’t go any further.

Gda Daly put it to Boy B that he was making it all up as he went along. Gda Daly said he was presenting him with facts and evidence and Boy B was changing his story to suit.

Gda Daly told Boy B he only wanted the truth. A girl had been absolutely brutally murdered, said the garda, and he told Boy B he owed it to himself, to his mother and to Ana to tell the truth.

Boy B then said he, Boy A and Ana had walked through the fields and Boy A brought Ana into the house.

He was just “tagging along” and he didn’t go into the house. He then started to leave.

“It was then I heard a scream”, Boy B said, adding “I was walking away when I heard the screaming”.

He described it as a “really like strong scream” and he could hear it from outside the house. He knew it was Ana, he said.

Boy B told gardai that “just when it was about to end it got muffled”.

Boy B started crying in the interview.

When asked why he ran away, he said he was scared, and he thought Ana and Boy A had been attacked

He also said he thought Boy A would be able to protect Ana.

Boy B said he ran home and he kept thinking that everything would be all right and Boy A would be able to protect Ana.

The trial continues before Mr Justice Paul McDermott and a jury of eight men and four women.

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