A man accused of murder rang a family relation and told her that he had hit a 90-year-old man because he would not give him money, a jury has heard.

Ross Outram (28) is on trial at the Central Criminal Court accused of murdering Paddy Lyons (90) at his home in Co Waterford nearly two years ago.

Mr Outram, of Ferryland, Waterford Road, Clonmel, Co Tipperary, has pleaded not guilty to murdering the retired farmer at Loughleagh, Ballysaggart, Lismore, Co Waterford, at a time unknown between February 23 and 26, 2017.

Giving evidence yesterday, Sandra Walsh told prosecution counsel John O’Kelly SC that her partner is Gary O’Brien. Mr O’Brien’s nephew is Ross Outram, the court heard.

Ms Walsh testified that she would only meet Mr Outram when she went to see his mother.

The witness agreed with Mr O’Kelly that she had received a phone call from Mr Outram on Facebook Messenger at 6.19pm on February 26, 2017. Mr Outram was looking for a number for her partner Mr O’Brien who was in the UK at the time, she said, as he [Mr Outram] wanted to go there.

Ms Walsh said she asked Mr Outram what was wrong and he replied by asking her if she had seen “about the man” on the news. The witness told Mr Outram that she had seen the news on Facebook.

Mr Outram told Ms Walsh that he would ring her back on another number, she said, adding that he rang her back again at 6.30pm.

Ms Walsh said she asked the accused on this phonecall what was wrong or what was going on. The witness said Mr Outram had replied: “I hit the man because he wouldn’t give me money.” She asked the accused if this was the man that had died in Waterford and he said it was, she explained.

Ms Walsh told the court that she later rang a sergeant stationed in Clonmel to report what Mr Outram had told her.

Ms Walsh said she went to Mr Outram’s house the next day and he asked her to bring him into town to get something to eat.

Ms Walsh was driving back towards Ferryland with Mr Outram when her car was stopped by gardaí and he was arrested, she said.

Under cross-examination by Michael O’Higgins SC, defending, Ms Walsh agreed that Mr Outram was “effectively reared” by his grandmother. She further agreed that Mr Outram’s grandmother was very close to Mr Lyons and she had died in 2005.

Mr O’Higgins told the court that Mr Outram’s mother reacted badly to her own mother’s death and “took to the drink”.

Mr O’Higgins put it to Ms Walsh that his client was concerned that Mr Lyons was giving his mother money which “she used to take drink”.

The witness replied that she did not know anything about this.

Sergeant Ger Falvey told Mr O’Kelly that he got a call to attend Mr Lyons’s house on February 25 and had used a flashlight to observe the deceased’s body. Mr Lyons was not wearing trousers, had on only a pair of boxer shorts and was sitting in a chair which faced the front door of the house, he said. A trail of urine was coming from his seat and there was soot on his legs as well as some “red marks”, possibly blood, Sgt Falvey said.

The trial continues.

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