Mayo secondary school pupil died from single stab wound

A YOUTH charged with murdering another teenager he found with his sister in a bedroom of their family home later described him to gardaí as 'a troublemaker', the Central Criminal Court has been told.

The accused, a minor, who cannot be named for legal reasons and denies murder, told officers investigating the death of Dovydas Jenkas (17), Mount Street, Claremorris, he had no reason to stab the victim and would never hurt him on purpose.

He says the death in the garden of the family home in the early hours of December 19, 2015, was accidental.

Mr. Justice Paul Butler and a jury was told at the Central Criminal Court, sitting in Castlebar today that the accused told gardaí he checked his mother's bedroom after hearing voices inside while his mother was away.

He said the bedroom door was locked and his sister initially would not let him in. As a noisy argument developed with his sister denying there was anybody with her, the deceased shut himself in the en-suite toilet, resisting attempts by the accused to open the door before jumping into the garden.

The accused told gardaí he picked up a 'souvenir' knife which he had made himself before going into the garden to scare his victim and get him to leave before his mother came home.

In statements to garda, the accused said that while chasing Dovydas around a trampoline in the garden, the deceased had bumped into him with his tummy.

“I did not even know I stabbed him until I saw blood on the blade of the knife (in the house) afterwards,” the accused, who said he thought the victim was “faking it” when he fell down, continued

The accused told gardai he had been “weirded out” to discover Dovydas with his sister.

State Pathologist Professor Marie Cassidy, who carried out a post mortem, gave evidence on Thursday that the cause of death was a single stab wound on the left side of the chest which penetrated the rib cage into the anterior wall of the heart.

Professor Cassidy said the knife wound was inflicted at a 45 degree downward angle penetrating the heart. Blood loss was considerable, the pathologist said.

The prosecution team, which is led by Mr. Patrick McGrath, senior counsel, concluded its case today. The trial will resume at 11 a.m on Monday.