Alan Vial and Nikita Burns convicted of Robin Wilkin’s murder

This report is a localnews.ie summary based on public court reporting and records; sources are listed below.

Alan Vial and Nikita Burns were convicted of murdering Robert ‘Robin’ Wilkin at the Central Criminal Court on 6 March 2025.

The jury found both guilty after a trial over Wilkin’s death near Sliabh Liag, Donegal. On 7 March 2025, the court imposed the mandatory sentence of life imprisonment on each.

In July 2026, both appealed their convictions to the Court of Appeal. Their lawyers argued that the joint trial prejudiced Vial and that Burns’s statements should not have been admitted. The three-judge court reserved judgment after a hearing on 23 July 2026.