Black plastic sheeting buried 64cm beneath the sitting room floor was the first indication of the “clandestine burial of human remains” at 3 Grattan Street, Youghal.
The body of Tina Satchwell, aged 45, who had lived in that home before she vanished more than six years earlier, was wrapped in this plastic, her body placed “quite deep” in sandy soil under the staircase. Her husband, Richard Satchwell, has pleaded not guilty to her murder at their East Cork home in 2017.
Different coloured concrete which appeared new and was poured under the stairs in the sitting room had alerted Detective Garda Brian Barry, a ballistics and forensics expert, to something “suspicious” during a search of the property in October 2023. This was a second search of the Satchwell home at 3 Grattan St, Youghal, following an initial search in 2017.
Strong lighting was used to search this area under the stairs, uncovering the different coloured patch of concrete in the sitting room of 3 Grattan St, Youghal.
Cadaver dog Fern also “showed interest” in this area during a search in October 2023, the Central Criminal Court has heard.
Gardaí and building contractors began excavating the area, breaking concrete with kango hammers and removing soil. Det. Gda Barry then found the black plastic sheeting, which he felt was “very important”.
Detective Sergeant Shane Curran from the Garda Technical Bureau, was the crime scene manager during the search which began on October 10, 2023.
He ordered for cadaver dog Fern to come back to the area where the black plastic was found and she confirmed human remains, as per her training, the court heard. Two forensic archaeologists who were on site then continued the excavation and the body was fully uncovered.
Builders had to remove a red brick wall under the stairs during the search in 2023 to facilitate access to the area where human remains would later be found.
Ms Satchwell’s hand was first uncovered by a forensic archaeologists.
The scene was shut down and the State pathologist was informed.
The deceased, still wrapped in black plastic, was removed from the shallow grave and placed in a body bag.
Her remains were taken to the mortuary in Cork University Hospital by contracted undertakers under garda escort.
Wearing a dressing gown over her pyjamas, a dressing gown belt around her body, Tina Satchwell was found wrapped in a blanket and covered in the black plastic.
Small shards of glass were found in her head and arm. False nails were removed from her body to sample DNA.
A belly button ring in the shape of a bar was found on her remains.
A wallet was found in her left hand dressing gown pocket.
It had a Playboy logo, with a rabbit head and dickie bow.
It had a red interior while the exterior appeared to be gold or bronze, although the exterior colour was difficult to tell, Detective Garda Karen McCarthy of the Garda National Technical Bureau, told the Central Criminal Court.
It contained her Public Service Card, a Holland and Barrett rewards card, an Xtravision membership card, “some form of ID from the Rathcormac car boot sale”, a Tesco club card and a Boots advantage card.
The cards were in her own name.
DNA samples were taken from Ms Satchwell's body and head hair at post mortem.
The deceased’s pyjama top, bottom and underwear were also taken at post mortem.
Det. Sgt Curran said that the body was buried unusually deep for a clandestine burial, with 84cm to the bottom of the burial and 64cm to the top. Although ground penetrating radar had been used to search for anomalies under the ground, this had not picked up Ms Satchwell's hidden body.
High grade metal detectors, used by the Garda Technical Bureau, can also be very useful for uncovering clandestine burials, as bodies will often contain some metal – a ring, a belt buckle, or potentially a bullet, the court heard.
The house was “chock-a-block with stuff", defence barrister Brendan Grehan SC said, referring to photographs from the scene. A concrete mixer and tools were in the 9ft x 11ft siting room where Ms Satchwell's body was found, along with tools and furniture. The house was hugely cluttered with dog faeces all over the floors.
The invasive search in 2023 would last four days.
Tina Satchwell, 45, went missing from her home in Youghal in east Cork on March 20, 2017.
More than six years later, in October 2023, her remains were found in a shallow grave buried beneath concrete in the sitting room under a stairwell in her home. Her husband Richard Satchwell reported her missing to gardaí on March 24, 2017, four days later.
The trial, in front of Justice Paul McDermott continues.
Officers told the court about finding her body during a second search of 3 Grattan St in Youghal in 2023
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