DNA evidence relied on by the State does not prove that a man accused of murdering Michael Barr at the Sunset House pub was actually one of three men involved, a barrister has told the Special Criminal Court.
Michael Bowman SC on Thursday told the three-judge, non-jury court that the State's evidence against his client Christopher Slator falls short and amounts to nothing more than suspicion.
He said that DNA matching Mr Slator's found on one of three masks and a pair of runners in the back seat of the getaway car does not prove that Mr Slator was part of the murder gang.
He pointed out that the DNA of numerous other unknown people not suspected of involvement in the murder was also found on the masks.
The forensic scientist who carried out the DNA swabs and testing said that he could not rule out the possibility that Mr Slator's DNA could have gotten on the masks by secondary or indirect transfer.
The scientist also accepted that the presence of the accused's DNA does not prove that he wore the mask.
Christopher Slator (37) of Carnlough Road, Cabra, Dublin 7, has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Mr Barr at the Sunset House pub on Summerhill Parade in Dublin 1 on April 25th, 2016.
He is the third man to go on trial at the non-jury court in relation to the murder.
Logistics hub
Mr Bowman said the evidence heard during the trial showed that there was a "logistics hub" at a house on the North Circular Road where the masks, guns and other items used by the gunmen would have been stored ahead of the planned ambush on Mr Barr.
Mr Bowman said it is possible that DNA could have been transferred onto the items while they were at that premises and asked how the court could conclude that the only reasonable inference from the DNA evidence is that Mr Slator wore the mask while in the car around the time of the shooting.
He also pointed out that numerous eyewitnesses at the pub where two gunmen burst in and opened fire, said that one of the men was significantly taller than the other.
Estimates suggested the taller man to be about six feet one or two inches while the smaller man was said to be about five inches smaller.
Another person at Walsh's Road, where the gang attempted to burn out the car, also described one of the three as being significantly taller, at about six feet, one inch.
Counsel pointed out that the two men already convicted of the murder are five feet eight and five feet 10 and Mr Slator is five feet eight.
He said it would be an "uncanny coincidence" if all those witnesses were mistaken. He added: "The missing man is not five feet eight and cannot be the defendant."
Booked flights
The prosecution also said that Mr Slator and an alleged accomplice who is already convicted of Mr Barr's murder, bought a ticket to Bangkok the morning after the shooting with a flight time later that afternoon.
Dominic McGinn SC said the fact Mr Slator booked the flight for the same day and didn't have any luggage supported the prosecution's case.
Mr Bowman said the manner of the journey was nothing more than "unusual" and the prosecution had not called any witnesses to say how many people book flights for the same day without checking luggage.
He said there are people who like to "book late and travel light".
He also said that an airline employee had told the trial that if a person does not check luggage that often just means that someone else has checked luggage on their behalf.
Mr Bowman added: "All it means is, he chooses not to pack a bag. It was booked late, so what? Just because this court or a jury may choose to book early, the defendant or whoever on his behalf, may book late."
He said the prosecution had "put up the bare minimum with a whiff of sulphur off it and say that is enough." He said the DNA evidence was the only evidence to be considered but added that it does not prove that Mr Slator was one of the three men involved in the shooting.
Ms Justice Tara Burns, presiding, said the court will reveal its verdict on July 15th.
