Rasharkin: Man charged with Paul O'Boyle murder apologises for assault

Paul Francis O'Boyle was found unconscious at the back of a pub in Rasharkin, County Antrim

A 56-year-old man charged with murder after the death of a man who was attacked in County Antrim, has apologised for the assault.

Paul Francis O'Boyle, 58, died last month, eight days after the incident in Rasharkin.

Malachy Crawford, 56, from Wallace Park in Rasharkin appeared at Limavady Magistrates' Court on Wednesday.

The court heard he admitted punching the victim once, but denied he intended to kill or cause Mr O'Boyle harm.

Mr Crawford is accused of murdering Mr O'Boyle on 16 April.

The victim was found unconscious at the back of Sé Óg's bar on Main Street in Rasharkin.

A defence barrister said Mr Crawford had been "deeply affected" by what had happened.

He had asked him specifically "to extend his sincere and heartfelt condolences to the family of the deceased and to echo the apologies he gave to police during the interviews".

Mr Crawford had originally been charged with causing grievous bodily harm with intent and was due to appear in court next month, but he was rearrested and charged with murder following the death of Mr O'Boyle.

Cigarette

A detective constable told the court how the two men were drinking in the pub.

She said that Mr O'Boyle rolled himself a cigarette and lit it while sitting at the bar, but when he got up to go to the smoking area, he headbutted Mr Crawford and then went to the beer garden.

She told the court CCTV cameras at the bar had captured Mr Crawford following Mr O'Boyle out "20 seconds later" and had punched him in the face with his left hand, causing him to "fall and hit his head".

The court heard Mr Crawford accepted that aspect of the incident, but denied delivering a second blow while Mr O'Boyle was on the ground.

The court heard that a second post mortem examination had confirmed the cause of death was "from the head injury from the fall".

Mr Crawford was arrested the day after the incident.

'Do not hold water'

She told the court on Wednesday, there were objections to bail due to concerns about witness interference after Mr Crawford allegedly told to the victim's brother "this isn't over" in the aftermath of the attack.

The victim's family had also raised concerns about the proposed bail address which was not disclosed in open court.

Mr Crawford's defence counsel said while there had indeed been an altercation immediately after the incident, he "very clearly denies" making any comments to the man.

He also argued police were satisfied the bail address was an appropriate place for Mr Crawford to go to.

Declaring that the objections to bail "do not hold water," the barrister said that the events which lead to Mr O'Boyle's death "are not characterised by gratuitous or wanton violence".

District Judge Peter King said that clearly "the context of this case is tragic" and that he had "some concerns" about the allegation that Mr Crawford struck the victim for a second time.

He said the "determinative feature" was that nothing had materially changed since Mr Crawford had been granted police bail prior to the victim's death.

He granted bail in the sum of £500 with a £10,000 surety from Mr Crawford's brother.

A curfew was imposed along with exclusions zones around Rasharkin, Kilrea and Ballymena.

"We are at the foot hills of what will be a long process," said the judge, adjourning the case to 22 May.

A trial was not likely to take place for "months if not years", he added.