Accused denies any part in Nellie attack

Nellie Geraghty — found in alleyway

THE man accused of leaving a pensioner for dead after an alleged bag-snatch in Shaw has denied robbing and violently attacking her.

Former addict Mark Royle (37) repeatedly said in court he had no link to the death of Nellie Geraghty, but admitted he was nearby at the time. Royle told the Manchester Crown Court jury he was riding a bicycle, hoping to buy drugs.

The 79-year-old woman was found clutching the strap of her missing bag, which contained her late husband’s ashes, in November, yards from her home in Elizabeth Grove. She died two days later at the Royal Oldham Hospital.

Royle, of no fixed abode, denies charges of murder, manslaughter and robbery.

The tattooed defendant gave conflicting evidence during a three-hour cross examination. He admitted resorting to crime to fund his drug habit and denied earlier claims by an acquaintance that an attempt to steal had gone wrong.

Royle was caught on CCTV wearing a red jacket, black tracksuit bottoms and white trainers and riding a mountain bike.

Mrs Geraghty suffered head injuries likely to have been caused by a kick or stamp. The last person to see her before the attack was a neighbour, who saw her walking from her address in Elizabeth Grove to the nearby community centre in Victoria Street.

The trial continues.






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