The trial of two men for the murder of Kieran Quilligan - who had been missing for five months - has been told that there were multiple fractures to his bones, consistent with blows from a blunt weapon, similar to a hammer.
However, Assistant State Pathologist Dr Margot Bolster said she could not say what the cause of death was, or when Mr Quilligan died, due to the level of body decompositon which meant there were no organs to examine or toxicology reports available.
Kieran Quilligan, who was 47, was first reported missing on 1 September 2023. His body was found in a jute bag in a ravine at Whitewell, adjacent to the Midleton to Whitegate road, on 29 January 2024.
Luke Taylor, 27, formerly of Cherry Lawn, Blackrock in Cork, and 33-year-old Niall Long, formerly of St Michael's Close, Mahon in Cork, both deny murdering Mr Quilligan.
In her evidence at the Central Criminal Court, sitting in Cork, Dr Bolster said that before she carried out a post-mortem examination, she examined the body at the scene.
She described going down a ravine, 8-10m from the roadway, where there was a jute bag covered in mud and vegetation.
Underneath this was another jute bag, she said, "partially open, with a pelvic bone protruding".
Dr Bolster also said that she could see ribs and "a huge skull with a bag around it, tied with a knot".
She told the jury of two women and ten men that the post-mortem the following day revealed multiple fractures to the bones, both old and recent.
Recent traumas, she said, included displaced fractures to both head and neck, fractures to the left ankle, fractures to the cheekbones, a depressed fracture to the left of the skull extending to the top of the head, and across the palate.
There were fractures to the upper and lower jaw bones, with only one tooth remaining either at death or post-mortem.
There were also multiple fractures to the chest and ribs, a displaced fracture to the right scapula with a small piece of bone missing, a fracture of the right upper limb, as well as a lower limb fracture of the right thigh bone, suggesting a blow with a blunt instrument, like a hammer, Dr Bolster said.
Mr Quilligan had received multiple blows of a blunt weapon, like a hammer, she added.
But as no internal organs were left, or toxicology available, she could not say what the cause of death was, or determine a precise cause.
Under cross-examination by Ray Boland, Senior Counsel for Niall Long, Dr Bolster said that Mr Quilligan's drug use would have increased his vulnerability to death by assault.
Asked by Senior Counsel Brendan Grehan, for Luke Taylor, about the plastic bags with knots around the victim's neck, Dr Bolster said that it looked like they were used to move the body.
"There's no evidence that there were bags over the head of the deceased. They were possibly used as a ligature, possibly used to carry the body," she said.
The pathologist also indicated that there was no evidence of a shooting or stab wounds.
Another witness, Sergeant Maurice O'Connor, of Anglesea Street Garda Station, gave evidence of examining mobile phones seized during a search of a house in Mahon two weeks after Mr Quilligan was reported missing.
In particular, he referred to Whatsapp messages between Janice Long, and her son, Niall Long.
In a message, sent on 2 September, she asked: "Ok, my jeep stinks of Dettol?" and the reply from his mobile number was: "Yeah, it does. The fella who robbed me and cut my neck got a hiding and was thrown in the boot", Sgt O'Connor told the court.
The trial before Ms Justice Siobhán Lankford has adjourned for the day and will continue tomorrow.
