Michael Murray denies harassment and death threats at Dublin trial

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Michael Murray was on trial at the Circuit Court in Dublin, charged with threatening to kill Dominic McGinn and Tony McGillicuddy, who prosecuted him for rape in 2013. The proceedings were reported on 17 June 2021.

He was also charged with harassing Dominic McGinn, his former defence solicitor and the woman he was convicted of raping by advertising them online as prostitutes. The solicitor and woman cannot be identified for legal reasons.

Murray has pleaded not guilty to the threats and harassment charges.

The report said he admitted having the phone, which his defence accepted had been given to him by another solicitor.

Detective Garda Edel Keogan told Seán Gillane SC, prosecuting, that she interviewed Murray on 8 May 2015. Detectives showed him advertisements containing the phone numbers of his former solicitor and the woman. He admitted posting an advertisement dated 19 January 2015 and using his phone to post another dated 21 January 2015.

Murray denied arranging for his former solicitor to be killed, but said he had wanted her abducted by a foreign gang and had cancelled the operation.

He said he had called his former solicitor a number of times because he was unhappy with his rape defence and believed his legal calls were being intercepted. Mark Thompson BL, defending, said concerns about interception explained his contact with prosecutors. Seán Gillane rejected the suggestion that calls had been accessed in that manner.

Mark Thompson also questioned the completeness of interview notes. Detective Garda Daniel Treacy agreed that the defence memo contained more than the account prepared by him and his colleague.

The trial was continuing before Judge Karen O’Connor and a jury.