A HANDWRITTEN NOTE in which the writer asked for forgiveness for what he had done was found in a bedroom of a home in Cork where a mother of one was discovered “cold and stiff to the touch” in a “blood soaked bed,” a murder trial has heard.

Regin Parithapara Rajan (43) of Kerala in India is on trial at the Central Criminal Court in Cork charged with the murder of his wife Deepa Dinamani.

The 38-year-old chartered accountant was found dead by members of the Armed Support Unit (ASU) when they went to her family home in Cardinal Court in Wilton in the city on 14 July, 2023.

Regin and Deepa had moved to Ireland from India with their young son four months earlier.

Crime scene examiner Detective Garda John Paul Twomey today told the trial that he visited the house in Wilton the day after Deepa was found dead onsite.

Detective Garda Twomey said that a notebook seized from the property contained a note which read: “I love you so much. Please forgive me for what I did as your mum was having something… and his name was Jay.”

Detective Garda Twomey told the jury that the note was difficult to read.

He read out what he could decipher. He stated that he seized and bagged amongst other items a knife, a wedding ring, a broken gold necklace and a bloodied t-shirt and shorts.

He said that he took various swabs from the body of the deceased.

Meanwhile, CCTV evidence was shown of what Detective Garda Dave Hickey described as the buying of the “potential murder weapon” two days before Deepa was discovered dead in her home.

Detective Garda Hickey said that CCTV from Tesco in Wilton Shopping Centre was examined and the accused Regin Rajan was captured buying a carving knife, a bottle of whiskey and a soft drink.

He said that Mr Rajan brought a bag for life to the supermarket on the afternoon of 12 July, 2023 and used a Tesco club card when he was purchasing the items.

Meanwhile, Derek Foley, call handler at the garda control room in Anglesea Street in Cork, gave evidence of having received an emergency call at 9.55pm on 14 July, 2023.

He said that he asked the caller for his name and Eircode.

He said the man identified himself as Regin Rajan and gave an eircode for a property in Cardinal Court in Wilton in Cork.

Mr Foley told the jury that the caller said that he had killed his wife.

“He said that he wanted the guards to come around and arrest him as he had killed his wife.”

Mr Foley asked the caller if there was anybody else in the property and the man replied that his five-year-old son was at home.

Mr Foley said that he offered to stay on the line until the gardaí arrived. However, the caller opted not to stay on the line. A recording of the 999 call was played to the jury.

Meanwhile, Detective Garda Patrick O’Toole of the ASU said that Ms Dimanani was found dead in an upstairs front bedroom of her home in Wilton shortly after 10pm on 14 July, 2023.

He said that Deepa was wrapped in a duvet on a bed. Detective Garda O’Toole said that she was on her left side facing towards the window of the bedroom.

“We rolled her onto her back. I checked for a pulse. She was cold to touch. There was a lot of blood in her hair. Congealed blood. She was naked.

“It looked like she had been there some time. Her limbs were quite rigid. I observed that there was a large knife in the room.”

Detective Garda Tony Devane of the ASU accompanied Detective Garda O’Toole at the scene.

He said when they arrived onsite, Mr Rajan complied with his instructions to get on his knees and to put his hands behind his neck.

Mr Rajan was handcuffed. Detective Garda Devane said that he asked Mr Rajan if there was anybody else in the house but that his reply was “incoherent” and “low.”

Detective Sergeant Michelle O’Leary of the Serious Crimes Unit said that when she arrived at the property at 10.07pm on 14 July, 2023 she observed that the bed where Deepa was found was “blood soaked”

“The female had a significant wound to her neck. There was significant blood on her person. The female was partially naked with a top pulled up tangled to her neck. It was quite clear she was deceased.”

Philip Hayes, a paramedic from the Kinsale Road Ambulance Station in Cork, said that when he attended at the scene that evening he noted that rigor mortis had set in.

He checked for signs of life but Deepa was “cold and stiff to the touch.”

The trial will continue tomorrow before Ms Justice Siobhan Lankford and a jury of five men and seven women.

Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.

You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.

If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.