A 29-year-old man has gone on trial charged with the murder of a 71-year-old woman in her home in Kilkenny almost two years ago.
Trevor Rowe has pleaded not guilty to murdering Ann Butler on 20 March, 2020.
The court was told Ms Butler's body was found in her home five days after she was killed, when gardaí received anonymous phone calls traced back to Mr Rowe.
Prosecuting counsel John O'Kelly told the jurors that Ms Butler died from asphyxia, as well as blunt trauma to the head, a wound to her neck and multiple stab wounds to her body.
He said it was a case where the intent to murder was clear.
Mr O'Kelly said that on 25 March 2020 gardaí received three anonymous 999 calls. The caller said he had killed a woman and that she was in Maudlin Street.
He said the calls were traced back to Mr Rowe, who had used someone else's phone to make the calls.
Gardaí went to Mr Rowe's home where he admitted he had made the calls and agreed to show them where the woman was. They found Ms Butler's body on her couch at her home.
We need your consent to load this rte-player contentWe use rte-player to manage extra content that can set cookies on your device and collect data about your activity. Please review their details and accept them to load the content.Manage Preferences
Mr O'Kelly said the jurors would hear about forensic evidence connecting Mr Rowe to the scene, including a can of cider found in the house, with his DNA.
A pair of gloves with Ms Butler's DNA were found in a bag belonging to Mr Rowe and part of a crucifix, which had been in her house, was found in his possession.
Mr O'Kelly said there would also be CCTV of the evening of 20 March showing Ms Butler heading home around 9.30pm. That was the last time she was seen alive. The footage shows Mr Rowe arriving at the street around 15 minutes later and coming back down the street around an hour later.
Ms Butler had lived in her home for many years, Mr O'Kelly said. After 20 March, both her daughter and her sister noticed she was not around and had called to the house, but did not get an answer.
The trial is expected to last ten days.
