Garda had no concerns about Bailey witness

A retired garda has said he had no concerns about the credibility of witness Marie Farrell in the early stages of the investigation into the murder of Sophie Toscan Du Plantier in 1996.

Michael Kelleher is being cross examined in the case against An Garda Síochána and the State for wrongful arrest.

It was put to Mr Kelleher that gardaí had accepted everything Marie Farrell had said, despite the fact that she had lied in her answers to a questionnaire circulated by gardaí.

Mr Kelleher said he understood that Ms Farrell could not have come clean about her whereabouts on a particular night due to her personal circumstances but that did not affect what she saw on the night.

Ms Farrell made statements to gardaí reporting sightings of Mr Bailey at key locations and times.

She later said she felt pressurised to identify Mr Bailey as the man she saw.

Counsel for Mr Bailey Tom Creed said gardaí were prepared to accept whatever Ms Farrell had said despite her earlier lies.

He said in order to accept Ms Farrell's statement about an early morning sighting of Mr Bailey, they would have had to reject statements from other witnesses which placed Mr Bailey elsewhere at the time.

Mr Kelleher said it was Christmas time and there was a lot of drink taken so all statements would have to be considered for their accuracy. 

Lawyers for Mr Bailey said another witnesses who said Mr Bailey has stayed in their house that night and he "could not have been in bed and on the street at the same time".

Mr Kelleher said the two locations were fairly close together and because a lot of drink had been taken in the pub and the house people may have been mistaken about times.

Mr Kelleher said there was no need to have an identity parade after Ms Farrell reported a sighting of Mr Bailey at Ceal Fada Bridge on the morning of the murder.

He said it would have been like taking a penalty kick if she already knew the person.

It was put to him that at that stage Ms Farrell did not know Mr Bailey.

Mr Kelleher replied that he did not know what her knowledge of Mr Bailey was.

"I did not meet Marie Farrell. I did not speak to her",

He was pressed about whether or not it would have been appropriate to have an identity parade where someone was allegedly sighted at 3am in the morning in the dark.

Mr Kelleher said it would have been inappropriate if she knew who she was picking out.

He also said he was not concerned about the fact that Ms Farrell had not made a statement about this sighting before Mr Bailey was arrested.

He said she had been in "dialogue" with gardaí but had not yet given her statement.

He said he understood she was "compromised" at the time.

Mr Kelleher was also asked if he was not concerned that the alleged sighting of Mr Bailey would have placed him three miles from his home and walking in the opposite direction to his house.

Mr Creed said if Mr Bailey had been at the murder scene he could have turned left at the end of the road and would have been only a mile-and-a-half from his house.

Instead the sighting placed him three miles away, walking away from home.

Mr Kelleher said he was not concerned.

Mr Kelleher denied that other statements about Ms Toscan du Plantier were not followed up because they did not accord with "the theory that Ian Bailey was the man".

Mr Creed said a man working at a petrol station in Skibbereen had made a statement about dealing with a French woman who was accompanied by a man before Ms Toscan du Plantier's death.

Mr Creed said this was not followed up with any particular relish.

Mr Kelleher said it was never established that the car was Ms Toscan du Plantier's.

He also said you would get all sorts of sightings of strange men in an investigation of that type.

The reason the scratches on Mr Bailey's hands were not photographed was "part of the agenda that anything that would assist him was not done and anything that would not assist him would", Mr Creed suggested.

Mr Kelleher said he would not agree.

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