"Spectacular breakthrough" led to DNA discovery, Grangegorman murders trial hears

A trial at the Central Criminal Court has heard that DNA evidence from two women found dead at sheltered accommodation in Grangegorman in 1997 was discovered on the jacket of Mark Nash, who stands accused of their murders. Nash, aged 42, with last addresses in Dublin, has pleaded not guilty to the murder of Sylvia Shields and Mary Callanan, whose bodies were found between March 6 and 7, 1997. The prosecution outlined that a bloodstain on Nash's jacket could not be analysed as DNA in 1997, but a breakthrough in July 2009 established DNA from both women on the garment. The court heard Nash initially confessed to the Grangegorman murders whilst in custody on unrelated charges connected to deaths in Roscommon, but subsequently retracted his admissions. The prosecution argued the DNA evidence, independent of any confession, points to Nash's involvement. The trial continues before Justice Carroll Moran.