Crossbow murder accused claims he was having sex with man in field at time of shooting

A man accused of shooting a pensioner dead with a crossbow has claimed he lied to police about his whereabouts to conceal a gay relationship.

Terence Whall, 39, told Mold Crown Court he was not at victim Gerald Corrigan’s home at the time of the murder, and was engaging in sexual activity in a nearby field.

Mr Corrigan, 74, was shot with a crossbow while adjusting his satellite dish in the early hours of 19 April 2019, and died in a hospital almost a month later.

Prosecutors accuse Mr Whall of carrying out reconnaissance at the victim’s home, in a rural part of the Welsh island of Anglesey, on the previous night and then returning to carry out the murder.

He is accused of disrupting the satellite dish signal in order to draw Mr Corrigan out of the home he shared with his disabled wife, while lying in wait with a crossbow.

When police initially asked where Mr Whall was on both evenings, the defendant said he had been at the home he shared with partner Emma Roberts in Bryngwran.

But a GPS system from the father-of-three's Land Rover Discovery, which was discovered burned out in a disused quarry last June, showed he had been driven near Mr Corrigan’s home on both nights.

When asked why he had not told police the truth, Mr Whall said he had not wanted to admit meeting friend Barry Williams for sex.

“What I do with my sexual life is my private business and nothing to do with North Wales Police or The Sun newspaper or everyone else,” he told the court on Friday.

"There's nobody knows the gravity of this situation more than me. I've had my name dragged through the papers."

He added: "I didn't really want to admit I'd been there with Barry. I didn't think they had the right to know."

Mr Williams has denied having a sexual relationship with the defendant, and previously told the court they did not meet on the evening of the murder.

Mr Whall, a sports therapist, said they became close friends after Mr Williams treated him for chest and shoulder pain.

"We both had really similar things going on in our lives with ex-wives and our children being used as weapons against us,” he added.

"We both had had enough of women in our lives, not being sexist.”

The defendant claimed they had several liasons between 2015 and 2018 while walking on Holyhead Mountain, but the sexual contact stopped when his relationship with Ms Roberts became serious.

Mr Whall said he argued with Ms Roberts in the week before the alleged murder and they met up again.

When asked why Mr Williams did not support his account, he replied: “I understand his girlfriend is pregnant, she is five weeks away from giving birth. Maybe he is scared, I don't know.”

The court heard that data showed the Land Rover Discovery belonging to Ms Roberts was driven to the driveway of Mr Corrigan’s home and then to nearby Porth Dafach beach on the night of 17 April.

Mr Whall said he thought the house was empty and wanted to go to a nearby clifftop to meditate, and was looking for somewhere suitable to meet with Mr Williams. He denied that the trip was reconnaissance.

The following night, the car was driven from Mr Whall’s home to the same beach, where it remained for an hour and a half until 12.42am – around 12 minutes after Mr Corrigan was shot.

He admitted previously owning a crossbow but claimed to have sold it to a man who visited his house three months before the murder.

Mr Whall ordered a new crossbow online but it did not arrive until after 19 April, the court heard.

But the jury was told he ordered crossbow bolts and broadheads online in February and March.

Mr Whall, of Bryngwran in Anglesey, denies murder. Together with co-defendant, Gavin Jones, 36, of Bryngwran in Anglesey, he also denies conspiracy to pervert the course of justice and conspiracy to commit arson in relation to the Land Rover, which Mr Whall claimed was stolen before it was found burnt out.

Mr Jones's brother Darren Jones, 41, and Martin Roberts, 34, have admitted arson. The trial continues.

Additional reporting by PA

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