Alexander Whelan jailed for manslaughter of Bruno Rolandi

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

Alexander Whelan was sentenced to two years in prison for the manslaughter of Bruno Rolandi. The proceedings were reported on 2 March 2020.

Whelan had originally been charged with murdering Rolandi, 56, at Green Road, Ballymoran, Edenderry, Co Offaly, on 19 November 2017. He pleaded guilty to manslaughter at the Central Criminal Court.

Mr Justice Michael White said Whelan had introduced a knife into a row at the family home and used substantial force to inflict the fatal wounds. The judge said the defence case was that Whelan had acted in defence of his mother and brother but used excessive force.

The judge said Whelan, thinking his brother Victor Whelan was under attack during a dispute with Rolandi, inflicted the fatal wounds. He said the accounts given by Whelan and his family of what happened were true and accurate.

Mr Justice White set a six-year headline sentence but reduced it to two years because of exceptional extenuating circumstances. He did not suspend any part of the sentence, saying Whelan was not a drug user and did not require rehabilitation because he had no history of violence.