Trial heard case against Keith Johnston over tool purchases

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

At the Central Criminal Court, the prosecution alleged that Keith Johnston knew or believed DIY tools bought by Kieran Greene would be used to dismember Patricia O’Connor. The proceedings were reported on 28 February 2020.

Johnston was seen on CCTV with Greene, who was buying tools in DIY shops on 9 June 2017. The prosecution said the purchases included hacksaws, axes and rubbish sacks, and that the two men acted together in buying them.

Johnston accepted that he had gone shopping with Greene, but said the trip was to replace lost or damaged tools. He told gardaí he had not “put two and two together” and did not know why Greene bought the items. The report said he had not mentioned the shop visits in his initial interviews. Johnston later told gardaí he had mentioned them and said he had honestly not remembered the shopping trip until it was put to him.

A separate charge that Johnston refurbished a bathroom to conceal evidence was withdrawn in the fifth week of the trial on the direction of Mr Justice Paul McDermott. Johnston said he helped fix the shower step because he thought Patricia O’Connor would return with an eviction notice. He also told gardaí he had thought he could potentially be cleaning up a crime scene.

The report said Greene had been found guilty of murdering Patricia O’Connor.

This report covers an earlier stage of the case. Later developments are not reported here.