A 22-YEAR-old woman appeared to view Anime cartoons on her laptop and apply for a job in Primark on the night she is alleged to have disguised herself as her grandmother as a “ruse” to conceal her death, a trial has heard. 

The jury also today watched CCTV footage of murder accused Kieran Greene purchasing items in various DIY stores in the days after retired hospital worker Patricia O’Connor’s death. 

The trial has heard that gardai watched a total of 343 hours of footage covering the front and back of the deceased’s Rathfarnham home, which was captured on a neighbour’s camera over a two-week period in 2017.

Father-of-three Mr Greene (34) has pleaded not guilty to murdering Patricia O’Connor (61) at her home in Mountainview Park, Rathfarnham, Dublin 14 on 29 May 2017.

The deceased’s daughter Louise O’Connor (41) and granddaughter Stephanie O’Connor (22), both of Millmount Court, Dundrum Road, Dublin 14, and Louise O’Connor’s ex-partner Keith Johnston (43), of Avonbeg Gardens, Tallaght, Dublin 24 are all charged with impeding the apprehension or prosecution of Kieran Greene, knowing or believing him to have committed an arrestable offence, to wit the murder of Mrs O’Connor on 29 May 2017.

The trial has heard that the body of Mrs O’Connor was dismembered into 15 separate parts that were found at nine different locations over a 30km range in the Dublin and Wicklow mountains between June 10 and 14, 2017. 
 

It is the prosecution’s case that at no point in time in CCTV footage can Stephanie O’Connor be seen as herself leaving Mountainview Park on the night of May 29 and that, in order to cover up the alleged murder, she dressed up as her grandmother as “a ruse” to pretend that Mrs O’Connor had stormed out of the house. 

Detective Garda Gary Collins told Garnet Orange SC, for Stephanie O’Connor, that a laptop computer was seized during a search of Mountainview on 21 June 2017. Mr Orange said the laptop belonged to Stephanie and the witness agreed that it had been widely used by a number of people in the house. 

Detective Garda Collins said everything from the hard drive of the laptop was copied for him and he used this data to focus particularly on the night of 29 May 2017. Two email accounts were associated with the laptop, one from Stephanie O’Connor and the other belonged to another family member, he said.

The platforms frequently used on this laptop included Anime cartoons websites and YouTube, he said. Detective Garda Collins agreed that the laptop “went quiet” on the evening of May 29 at 6.07pm and it was next used at 9.40pm that night. The witness agreed it had been “dormant” in between these times.

Detective Garda Collins agreed with Mr Orange that the laptop was “revived” again at 10.10pm with YouTube and Anime cartoons being viewed. After 11.05pm, there was a search for job opportunities at Primark in Dundrum and Dropbox was signed into four minutes later, said Mr Orange.

The witness further agreed with Mr Orange that it would appear a CV was downloaded from a Dropbox account at 11.08pm and the person involved appeared to be Stephanie O’Connor. The CV was sent to Primark at 11.09pm. 

The trial has heard that a female, not identified to the jury, can be seen leaving the front of the house in CCTV footage at 9.34pm and walking quickly down the driveway with a suitcase in her hand.
  
Evidence has also been given that at 10.05pm, a female with a suitcase appears at the left-hand side of the house and goes in the back door. She closes the back door a minute later.

 
CCTV evidence 

Showing the jury CCTV footage from Homebase in Nutgrove on 5 June, Garda Thompson described Mr Greene and Mr Johnston entering the store at 1.50pm. 
At 2.02pm on the same day, the witness testified that Mr Greene walks up the driveway of Mountainview followed by Mr Johnston, who is carrying a bucket of paint.
At 3.17pm, Mr Johnston hands Mr Greene a bag of cement or grout at the back door of the house, he outlined.

At 4.30pm, Mr Johnston is seen carrying a paint brush in his hand and appears to brush it up and down the wall, said Garda Thompson.

CCTV footage commencing on 6 June was then played for the jury, showing Mr Greene walking outside with a paint tray at 3.54pm and Mr Johnston holding an orange bucket, he said.

Garda Thompson then moved onto footage from 9 June, which shows a Toyota Corolla reversing out of Mountainview at 3.10pm. At 4pm, Mr Greene and Mr Johnston enter Mr Price in Tallaght and walk around the shop with Mr Greene carrying a black canister. Mr Greene can then be seen at the till buying a number of items including a plastic canister and Mr Johnston carries some items, said the witness.

At 4.15pm on the same day, a Toyota Corolla car driven by Mr Greene is seen entering Belgard Retail carpark in Tallaght. Five minutes later, Mr Greene and Mr Johnston enter B&Q and Mr Greene is seen purchasing two pairs of gloves, black bags and two saws. Both men leave the shop carrying the purchased items, said the witness, adding that the car then exits the carpark.

At 4.40pm, the Toyota Corolla car driven by Mr Greene with an outline of a person in the passenger seat enters The Square carpark in Tallaght, said the witness. Mr Greene and Mr Johnston go into Shoezone at 4.44pm and both men then leave the shop carrying items.

At 5.08pm, Mr Greene and Mr Johnston are seen browsing in Woodies in Tallaght. The two men are then seen at the till and Mr Greene purchases items, he said. Upon leaving the store, Mr Greene is carrying an item with a handle. The Toyota Corolla car drives into the driveway of Mountainview at 5.48pm and Mr Greene walks up the driveway.

On 9 June at 6.19pm, Mr Greene is seen going to Boots in Nutgrove Shopping Centre, where he purchases some items at the till. He then enters Eurogiant and purchases babywipes and household gloves, said Garda Thompson. He then returns to Mountainview. 
At 8.54pm, Mr Greene removes a child seat from the passenger seat of the Toyota Corolla car before it reverses out of the driveway five minutes later. 

On 10 June at 4.15am, the Toyota Corolla pulls into the driveway of Mountainview and a male is seen walking up the driveway, concluded Garda Thompson.

The trial has heard that while in custody, Mr Greene changed his account of killing and dismembering his partner’s mother, six months after he was charged with her murder. 

The trial continues before Mr Justice Paul McDermott and a jury of six men and six women.