A 23-year-old man has been found guilty of murdering Cameron Reilly, whose body was found in a field in Dunleer, Co Louth four years ago.
Aaron Connolly of Willistown, Drumcar, had pleaded not guilty to the murder of the 18-year-old at Shamrock Hill, Dunleer on 26 May 2018.
The jury returned a unanimous verdict after more than ten-and-a-half hours of deliberation which began on Tuesday.
Student Cameron Reilly had been out with a group of friends in Dunleer in Co Louth on 25 May 2018.
They were drinking in a field and left around midnight to get food from a takeaway.
Mr Reilly returned to the field. His body was found there the following morning.
The jury was told he had died violently.
The cause of death was asphyxiation from pressure to his neck.
The prosecution said Connolly was among those in the group that night and that he had returned to the field with Mr Reilly.
Connolly at first told gardaí they had gone their separate ways at the end of the night and that he did not look back.
However after the trial began he admitted there had been sexual activity between them but he maintained Mr Reilly was alive when he left him.
The jury was told that Connolly’s DNA was found on the body of Mr Reilly.
Prosecuting counsel Dean Kelly said Connolly had lied from the beginning of the investigation to the end.
He said the constant fox-like evolution of the lies rebutted any suggestion he was lying to protect his private life or sexual preferences.
However, defence counsel Michael Bowman said strategic lies had been told by several young people who were there on the night.
He said lies may be told for all sorts of reasons out of fear and panic and the fact that someone had lied was not enough to prove a charge of murder.
This afternoon the jury was given the option of returning a majority verdict, with a verdict delivered after a total of 10 hours and 39 minutes of deliberation.
Connolly will be sentenced on Tuesday next when the court will hear victim impact statements.
He has been remanded on bail with strict conditions.
