Alan Vial, 41, and Nikita Burns, 25, were found guilty last year of murdering 66-year-old Robert 'Robin' Wilkin. The pair beat him with a stone and threw his body over Ireland's highest cliffs at Sliabh Liag in Donegal. They have now argued before the Court of Appeal that their convictions should be quashed.
The court heard that the trio had been drinking together on June 25, 2023, in various locations around Donegal before a fight broke out as Vial drove them along a rural road towards their home in Killybegs. Mr Wilkin suffered two blows to the back of his head with a stone that either killed him or left him unconscious. Vial and Burns then took him to the clifftop and threw his body over the edge.
Appeal arguments
Shane Costelloe SC, representing Vial, argued that his client was prejudiced when the jury heard confessions Burns made after the murder. He suggested the pair should have been tried separately to prevent the jury from hearing her pin the fatal blows on Vial. He acknowledged that the trial judge, Mr Justice Paul McDermott, had instructed the jury not to use one defendant's statements against the other, but argued the jury would have been 'overwhelmed' by the 'sheer emotional negativity' of the prejudicial material.
Eoin Lawlor SC, for Burns, argued that her self-incriminating statements were not voluntary and should not have been presented to the jury, as she was intoxicated and not in a rational state of mind.
Prosecution response
Bernard Condon SC, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, said Vial would need to show that the refusal to hold separate trials caused a miscarriage of justice. He argued there was ample evidence of Vial's guilt regardless of Burns' statements. He called the judge's instructions 'impeccable' and said it was simple for a jury to disregard Burns' words when considering Vial's case. Regarding Burns, he said declarations to private citizens are always admissible, and the law only protects against involuntary statements to the State.
The Irish Coast Guard recovered Mr Wilkin's body from the sea eight days after the attack. Due to damage from predators and decomposition, State Pathologist Dr Margaret Bolster could not determine a cause of death. She found numerous fractures to Mr Wilkin's face but could not tell which were from the cliff fall and which from the assault. However, two fractures at the back of his head were 'entirely consistent' with a strike from a blood-stained rock found at the cliff top. DNA tests showed the blood and hairs on the rock belonged to Mr Wilkin.
During the trial, Vial testified that Burns delivered the two blows to the back of Mr Wilkin's head. He said he did not tell gardaí about her actions because he had feelings for her. Burns, in her garda interviews, blamed Vial and denied hitting Mr Wilkin, calling her confessions to others 'exaggeration'. The jury found both guilty of murder in a joint venture to seriously injure Mr Wilkin. The Court of Appeal, comprising Mr Justice Patrick McCarthy, Ms Justice Tara Burns, and Mr Justice Charles Meenan, deferred judgment.
