Alan Vial and Nikita Burns have been found guilty of murdering 66-year-old Robert (Robin) Wilkin, whose body was thrown over the cliffs at Sliabh Liag in Co Donegal.
The jury of seven women and five men at the Central Criminal Court on Thursday afternoon returned majority 10-to-two verdicts in respect of each accused.
Following the verdict, Mr Justice Paul McDermott exempted the panel from further jury service for 10 years.
Burns wept as prison officers escorted her from the court while Vial chatted with members of his legal team.
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Vial and Burns will be sentenced to the mandatory term of life imprisonment at a sentencing hearing on Friday, when members of Mr Wilkin’s family will be invited to make a statement to the court.
Vial (39), from Drumanoo Head, Killybegs, and Burns (23), of Carrick, Co Donegal, had pleaded not guilty to Mr Wilkin’s murder in Donegal on June 25th, 2023.
The jury heard that Mr Wilkin suffered at least two depressed fractures to his head before he was put over Sliabh Liag, a popular tourist attraction that is among the tallest cliffs in Europe.
The Irish Coast Guard recovered his body from the sea eight days later. Due to predator damage and decomposition, State Pathologist Dr Margaret Bolster was unable to identify a cause of death.
She noted multiple fractures but could not say if those were caused by the fall over the cliff or a prior assault.
[ Jury begins deliberations in Sliabh Liag murder trialOpens in new window ]
However, the trial heard the two fractures to the back of Mr Wilkin’s head were not consistent with a fall down a cliff and were “entirely consistent” with having been caused by a bloody rock found by gardaí at the top of the cliffs.
DNA testing showed the blood and hairs on the rock belonged to Mr Wilkin.
More to follow...
