Shane Courtney (19) died after being hit by two vehicles, but one of the drivers – a taxi man from Bangladesh - denied any involvement. He insisted to gardai the other driver was solely responsible.
A taxi driver has admitted he lied to gardai when he told them he had not hit a young cyclist who died in a road traffic collision in Co Kerry just over four years ago.
Rabiul Alam, a 38-year-old originally from Bangladesh, told gardai that his taxi had not hit teenager Shane Courtney.
He claimed another vehicle fatally struck the 19-year-old engineering student from Faha, Killarney, Kerry
Alam was charged with perverting the course of justice by knowingly and falsely informing gardai the other car at the scene of the collision was the only vehicle to hit the dead man.
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He was due to go on trial this week, with the case expected to las a number of days.
But after initially entering a not guilty plea at Tralee Circuit Criminal Court on Tuesday morning he changed that to guilty when the court returned after lunch.
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While a jury had been sworn in to hear the trial, the admission of guilt meant Judge Tom O’Donnell told the jurors they would not be needed.
He remanded Alam on continuing bail to appear before the court again on January 11th, when a date for his sentencing hearing would be set.
Judge O’Donnell indicated to the court he was considering a sentencing date of February 16th.
Prosecuting barrister Tom Rice told the court that Alam, a father of three from Kings Park, Muckross Road, Killarney, was driving a car that struck Mr Courtney, who was out training for triathlon.
After the teenager was knocked from his bike, he was then struck by a second car driven by a female motorist.
Alam was charged with knowingly and falsely informing Garda Paudie Twohig that he had never hit Mr Courtney and that the other car was the only vehicle that had hit the dead man.
The court was told the only criminal charges pursued in the case to date relate to Alam’s efforts to mislead the gardai and pervert the course of justice.
Nobody has been charged with any motoring offences linked to Mr Courtney's death.
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