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'I am racist and I'm not afraid to say it': life for 'brutal' murder of Croatian man

Summary

In the Central Criminal Court, Ms Justice Mary Ellen Ring sentenced Mark Lee (44) and Anthony Delappe (19) to life imprisonment for the murder of Josip Strok (31) at Grangeview Way, Clondalkin, on April 3, 2024. Both defendants had pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. The judge stated that Lee acted on weak hearsay evidence that the deceased and his friend, David Druzinec (29), had assaulted a child. Lee was also sentenced to six years for assaulting Mr Druzinec causing him harm, while Delappe received three years for the same offence; these sentences will run concurrently with their life terms. The judge noted that Delappe's offence was not aggravated by hatred and that he was just past his 18th birthday. Connor Rafferty (21), who had pleaded guilty to assaulting Mr Druzinec, was found not guilty of murder by a jury last month. Ms Justice Ring will sentence Rafferty for the assault causing harm next week. The court heard that Lee and Delappe struck Mr Strok repeatedly, with Delappe using a plastic pickaxe handle, while Rafferty struck him with a half-crutch. Mr Strok suffered a catastrophic brain injury and never regained consciousness. Ms Justice Ring described the attack as brutal and noted that Lee had made discriminatory online statements prior to the incident.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: 'I am racist and I'm not afraid to say it': life for 'brutal' murder of Croatian man. Charges or matters: murder but guilty to the manslaughter of Mr Strok at Grangeview Way in Clondalkin on April 3, 2024; assaulting Mr Druzinec causing him harm and Ms Justice Ring will sentence Rafferty for that offence next week. Procedural stage: sentence

When:

• April 3, 2024 Other
• 2025-11-17 Publication

Case subjects

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Sentence Violent Crime

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Read the original CNI report