Anthony Farrell convicted of murdering Arklow shopkeeper John Deasy

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

Anthony Farrell, 20, was found guilty of murdering Arklow shopkeeper John Deasy. The proceedings were reported on 13 April 2011.

Mr Deasy, 44, died from a stab wound to the chest in November 2009 after confronting Farrell, who was carrying out a robbery at Brauders newsagents in Arklow.

Farrell had admitted the stabbing. His lawyers argued that he had not intended to murder Mr Deasy. Farrell told gardaí that it was an accident and that he had never meant for any of it to happen.

The jury of nine men and three women returned a unanimous verdict after deliberating for just under four hours.

The report said victim impact statements would be heard on 20 May, when Farrell was due to receive the mandatory life sentence for murder and also be sentenced for robbery.

This report covers an earlier stage of the case. Later developments are not reported here.