Deliberations continuing in trial of four accused of obstructing Ashling Murphy murder investigation

A Central Criminal Court jury will continue their deliberations tomorrow in the trial of four family members charged with offences relating to obstructing the arrest of the man who murdered school teacher Ashling Murphy. 

Jozef Puska murdered 23-year-old Ms Murphy by stabbing and slashing her neck after attacking her while she exercised along the canal towpath outside Tullamore on the afternoon of January 12, 2022. A jury later convicted him of that murder and he is serving a life sentence.   

His brothers, Lubomir Puska Jnr (38) and Marek Puska (36) are charged with withholding information.    

Their wives, Viera Gaziova (40) and Jozefina Grundzova (32) are charged with impeding the apprehension or prosecution of Jozef Puska by burning his clothes.   

All the accused were living with Jozef Puska, his wife Lucia, and 14 children at Lynally Grove, Mucklagh, Co Offaly when the offences are alleged to have occurred in January 2022.   

All accused have pleaded not guilty to all charges.  

The jury originally began their deliberations on Wednesday, but an amendment was made to the indictment today.   

The amendment relates to the charge that the accused knew that Jozef Puska had committed the offence of murder or some other arrestable offence. The amended indictment now reads that they knew he had committed the murder of Ashling Murphy or some other arrestable offence.    

In her closing speech earlier this week, prosecutor Anne Marie Lawlor SC told the jury that Marek and Lubomir Jnr knew what Jozef had done shortly after 9.30pm on the night of the murder because Jozef told Marek. Despite this, Ms Lawlor said Marek and Lubomir Jnr failed to disclose vital information when they spoke to gardai. Their wives burned Jozef's clothes to impede his arrest or prosecution, she said.  

In her charge to the jury, Ms Justice Caroline Biggs said that the prosecution allege that Marek did not give information that Jozef had returned home on the night of Ms Murphy’s murder with visible injuries, that Jozef admitted to killing or seriously injuring a female with a knife, that Marek was aware of an arrangement to burn the clothes worn by Jozef, and that Jozef subsequently travelled to Dublin.    

She said that the prosecution case against Lubomir Jnr was similar, except for the fact that there was no allegation that he was aware of an arrangement to burn the clothes.   

Ms Justice Biggs told the jury that the prosecution must prove that the two brothers had no reasonable excuse for not disclosing this information, adding that an attempt to protect a family member is not a reasonable excuse. She said what is reasonable is the issue of self-incrimination, urging the jury to consider if there was any evidence supporting the submission put forward by the defence that the accused had this reasonable excuse.   

The jury had previously heard from defence counsel Karl Finnegan SC, who said in his closing speech that Marek Puska was entitled to remain silent to avoid incriminating himself. Mr Finnegan said there was a real risk that the information his client had could implicate him in an offence of assisting his brother after the murder.    

He said the legislation regarding withholding information was introduced following the Omagh bombing to force people with knowledge of that atrocity to come forward.   

However, Mr Finnegan said, the legislation does not remove a person's right to remain silent if they believe that they could incriminate themselves. At the time, Mr Finnegan said, there was a real risk that his client would be arrested for assisting Puska after the murder by arranging to get him out of Tullamore or because he knew of the plan to burn Jozef's clothes.  

Kathleen Leader SC, for Lubomir Jnr, said her client delayed but did not withhold information. She said he had a reasonable excuse for the delay and asked the jury to consider the "natural sense of protection for his younger brother".  

Paul Murray SC, for Ms Grundzova, told the jury that when his client burned Puska's clothes, she did not have any of the evidence that would later prove Jozef's guilt.   

Damien Colgan SC, for Ms Gaziova, told the jury that his client’s view at that time was that Jozef had been the victim of an assault.      

The jury of seven men and five women will continue their deliberations tomorrow.