Teen accused of Scarlett Faulkner murder identified in sun‑bed selfie

A teenager accused of murdering Scarlett Faulkner was identified in a selfie taken on a sun‑bed just over five hours after the fatal assault, the Central Criminal Court was told.

The court heard the 17‑year‑old sent a message to a friend at 6.55 pm on Saturday, 21 March, saying she was “bored off my brains”. Later that evening she sent another text about “the guards” being outside her uncle’s home, to which the friend replied that they were also outside hers.

Audio recordings from 8.28 pm that night captured the teenager describing a chase in a van, the older co‑accused ramming the vehicle off the road, and the teenager “battering” Ms Faulkner with a bar, stating “her brains were open” and that she “stuck it into her eyeball”.

Prosecution’s case

Prosecutor Seoirse Ó Dúnlaing SC told the jury the motive was Ms Faulkner’s relationship with the older accused’s estranged husband, alleging the pair “hunted down” the victim and her boyfriend for 24 hours before the attack at the Birdhill roundabout.

Sgt Jennifer Skelly, who examined mobile‑phone data, confirmed the assault occurred just after 5.20 pm on 21 March and that the teen took a series of selfies between 10.26 pm and 10.36 pm, the latter showing her on a sun‑bed.

The 17‑year‑old has pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter, while a 41‑year‑old woman is alleged to have been part of a joint enterprise. The trial continues before Mr Justice Kerida Naidoo and a jury of eight men and four women.

Source: Irish Examiner. Photo: RDNE Stock project / Pexels.