Dwayne Watts, 34, pleads guilty to murder of Mark Ireland with medieval halberd

A Warwick man has confessed to the barbaric murder of his uncle with a medieval spiked axe while the man’s son watched on, helpless.

Dwayne Thomas Andrew Watts, 34, pleaded guilty to the murder of his uncle Mark Ireland with a medieval weapon. Picture: Facebook/ File

A Warwick man who savagely murdered his uncle has apologised to his family in court.

Dwayne Thomas Andrew Watts, 34, pleaded guilty to murder before Toowoomba Supreme Court on Thursday after fatally spearing his uncle with a medieval weapon as his cousin, the victim’s son, watched on.

Watts entered his guilty plea in Toowoomba early this month, the same morning a planned trial for the murder was meant to commence.

Dwayne Thomas Andrew Watts, 34, pleaded guilty to murdering fellow Warwick man Mark Ireland with a medieval weapon. Picture: Facebook

Prosecutor Dejana Kovac said Watts confronted his uncle Mark Ireland, 54, at a Warwick property in September 2020 with a medieval halberd, a long two-piece weapon with a spiked shaft and an axelike edge.

The court was told Watts cornered his uncle and made him beg for his life before plunging the weapon into Mr Ireland’s head.

“(Watts drove) the spike through the nose and into the skull and deep into the brain,” Ms Kovac said.

“The blade reached the back of the skull, fracturing the bone.

“The wound was catastrophic … killing the deceased instantly.”

Halberds in "Arsenal" Museum in Lviv (Ukraine). Picture: Lestat (Jan Mehlich) under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Ms Kovac said the wound measured 22.5cm long which indicated almost the entire length of the blade was forced into Mr Ireland’s skull.

“The degree of force required to cause the penetrative head injury is considered to be severe,” Ms Kovac said.

The court was told Mr Ireland’s adult son witnessed the entirety of his father’s murder.

Ms Kovac said the man had “desperately tried to intervene” but was threatened by Watts who physically prevented him from interfering.

Ms Kovac called the murder a “tragic and senseless” killing and said Mr Ireland’s son now suffered “deep and lasting trauma” from witnessing his father’s brutal death.

Defence barrister Damian Walsh said Watts suffered a traumatic childhood and struggled with various serious mental health issues.

He said Watts had a loose memory of the murder but had admitted to police and witnesses, while intoxicated, that he had killed Mr Ireland as he believed he had raped another close family member.

Mark Ireland, 54, died from facial and head injuries in 2020 after he was attacked by his family member Dwayne Thomas Andrew Watts. Picture: Facebook

Mr Walsh read out a letter of apology on behalf of Watts, directed at Mr Ireland’s surviving family.

“I would like to sincerely apologise for taking the life of Mark Ireland,” the statement read.

“I would also like to apologise to his family as well as my own family.

“As a result of my action I have let multiple people down and caused unexplainable heartache

“I will do anything I can in my power to change and become a better person.

“I know nothing I will do will ever be able to reverse what happened, but I want to strive for a better future.”

Justice Catherine Muir sentenced Watts to life imprisonment and declared 1702 days of pre-sentence custody as time already served.

He will be eligible for parole after serving 20 years.