Courts / Dublin / Report

"Gentle soul" brutally murdered after saving friend's life during knife attack

Date
2018-01-11

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Dublin

County
Dublin

Summary

In October 2016, 24‑year‑old Charles Cleary murdered Leo Carolan, a 25‑year‑old student of creative music at IADT, after a robbery attempt at the South Circular Road flat. Cleary, who had no fixed abode but was from Rathfarnham, was motivated by the €14,000 that Swiss student Ludovic Thomas had withdrawn from a bank. Thomas had approached Carolan for an envelope for the money; when Carolan left the room, Cleary stabbed Thomas with a butterfly knife, allowing Thomas to escape. Cleary then returned and stabbed Carolan to death, inflicting 12 wounds that severed his jugular vein and pierced his heart and lungs. Thomas survived with multiple knife wounds, including a liver laceration. Cleary pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court and was sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder and a concurrent 15‑year term for the attempted murder, with the robbery taken into account.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: "Gentle soul" brutally murdered after saving friend's life during knife attack. Charges or matters: the murder of Leo Carolan (25) at the flat on the South Circular Road on October 4, 2016 and to the attempted murder of Swiss student Ludovic Thomas (now 26) on the same occasion. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

October 4, 2016 Hearing Or Sentence
2018-01-11 Publication

Why: Detective Inspector David Harrington explained that Mr Carolan was a student of creative music at IADT, Dun Laoghaire. CNI source report

Case subjects

Unnamed 24-year-old

Convicted Person

Charges: the murder of Leo Carolan (25) at the flat on the South Circular Road on October 4, 2016 and to the attempted murder of Swiss student Ludovic Thomas (now 26) on the same occasion (Admitted)

Plea: Guilty

Outcome: A 24-year-old Dublin man has been sentenced to life in prison for murdering a student who saved the life of his friend after coming to his aid during a knife attack. Justice Patrick McCarthy imposed the mandatory life sentence for the murder and 15 years for the attempted murder.