The young Belfast man accused of murdering veteran republican Francis 'Bap' McGreevy gave himself up to police out of fear, his trial heard on Tuesday.
Thomas Valliday made the admission during police interviews in which he accused 51-year-old Mr McGreevy of being a 'killer' connected to the "provies".
However, Valliday, 21, from Lady Street, Belfast, later also described the father of two as "a gentleman" who loved to "party".
Valliday admits fighting with, but denies murdering Mr McGreevy who was found in his Ross Street flat brutally beaten in March 2008.
He later died in hospital.
Belfast Crown Court heard that during his initial police interviews Valliday said that following the attack on Mr McGreevy a friend's mother told him there was a "car-load" of men looking for him.
Valliday said he took this to mean "a car-load of provies looking for me" because Mr McGreevy "was a provie".
In the follow-up interview Valliday said he knew there were a number of other people who could have been responsible for the killing.
However, he refused to name names, claiming that "once I get out I will get killed stone dead, I know what they're like".
Valliday claimed that as he "bolted" after fighting with Mr McGreevy, "others were standing about drinking".
He went on to tell police that the veteran republican, "he's not an angel...he killed somebody himself before".
Valliday later blurted out: "I handed myself in because I was frightened".
© UTV News