KNIFE CASE

Galway man, 24, ‘stabbed in heart with such force that knife broke rib’, Cork murder trial told

• Published: 18:25, 9 Oct 2023
• Updated: 18:25, 9 Oct 2023

A 24-YEAR-old man received a single stab wound to the heart with such force that the knife broke a rib, a murder trial heard today.

Conor Quinn collapsed shortly after the incident on Bridge Street in Mallow, Co Cork, on July 12, 2018.

He died of haemorrhage, shock and partial lung collapse after he was struck with the knife.

Tyler ‘Tiggy’ Jackson has denied murdering Mr Quinn, a native of Galway, in the Central Criminal Court sitting in Cork.

The trial previously heard he had travelled to Cork to attend the Cahirmee Horse Fair and to meet up with relatives.

His girlfriend was heavily pregnant at the time of his death.

State Pathologist Dr Margaret Bolster told the jury of eight men and four women that the stab wound measured eight to 12 centimetres in depth, penetrated the heart and fractured a rib.

She said the knife entering the ventricle chamber of the heart, which pumps blood in to the aorta, led to the partial collapse of the left lung.

Prosecuting barrister Ray Boland, SC, told Dr Bolster that the defence in the case had introduced the proposition that Mr Quinn could have possibly inadvertently stabbed himself when he collided with the accused.

Dr Bolster said that this would be “very unlikely” because “it would require at least a moderate degree of force”.

Brian McInerney, SC, defending said one witness said that they saw Mr Quinn running across the road and colliding with Mr Jackson.

Mr McInerney asked if that would amount to “a moderate amount of force”.

Dr Bolster again replied it was “very unlikely that he (Quinn) would have stabbed himself”.

She also indicated that the postmortem revealed that the stab wound was inflicted laterally from the side towards the centre and penetrated the heart.

She said Mr Quinn had suffered “massive blood loss”.

DEFENSIVE CUT

He had minor bruising and abrasions to the body including what appeared to be a defensive cut on his right arm.

Forensic scientist Dr Paula Allen who analysed the bloods of the deceased said that Mr Quinn had 181 mg of alcohol per 100 mls of blood and 237 mg of alcohol per 100 mls of urine.

Dr Bolster had previously told the trial that this is the equivalent of drinking six pints.

Cocaine was also detected in his system.

Dr Allen said that a veterinary product used to treat worms in cattle was also detected in the system of the deceased.

Such products are often put in cocaine as a bulking agent.

The trial continues tomorrow before Ms Justice Eileen Creedon and the jury.