Courts / Dublin / Report

5 Notorious Irish Murder Cases

Date
2016-02-16

Stage
Sentence

Primary locality
Dublin

County
Dublin

Summary

This report details five notorious Irish murder cases, including the sentencing of Malcolm McArthur. McArthur pleaded guilty to the murder of Bridie Gargan and was sentenced to life in jail. The article also covers the Grangegorman killings, where Mark Nash was found guilty of the murders of Sylvia Shields and Mary Callinan in 2015, receiving a second life sentence. Although Dean Lyons initially confessed to these crimes, charges against him were dropped in 1998 after psychological testing suggested he was highly suggestible. Additionally, the report notes that Geoffrey Evans and John Shaw were sentenced to life in jail for the murders and rapes of Elizabeth Plunkett and Mary Duffy. Colin Whelan was sentenced to life in 2005 for the murder of his wife, Mary Gough, after faking his death and being extradited from Spain. Finally, Graham Dwyer is described in relation to the murder of Elaine O'Hara, though specific sentencing details for this case are not provided in the text. The validated procedural stage for the highlighted subjects is sentence, with findings of guilt and life imprisonment imposed for the proven charges.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: 5 Notorious Irish Murder Cases. Charges or matters: the murder of Bridie Gargan, sparing the State the embarrassment of a trial, and was sentenced to life in jail; the murder of Mary Callinan; her murder but seven months before his trial in 2003, in a Reggie Perrin-style twist, he faked his own death. Procedural stage: sentence. Findings: Found guilty

When:

July 1982 Incident
August 13th Incident
August 1976 Other
September 10th Other
September 26th Other
March 7th 1997 Other
April 1998 Hearing Or Sentence
August 22 2012 Other
Friday 13th September 2013 Other
2016-02-16 Publication

Why: Having spent the last of his inheritance on maintaining his lavish lifestyle, in July 1982 Malcolm McArthur left his partner and his son while on vacation in Tenerife and returned to Ireland to fund his expensive tastes through crime. CNI source report

Case subjects

Bridie Gargan

Defendant

Charges: the murder of Bridie Gargan, sparing the State the embarrassment of a trial, and was sentenced to life in jail; the murder of Mary Callinan; her murder but seven months before his trial in 2003, in a Reggie Perrin-style twist, he faked his own death (Proven)

Plea: Guilty

Finding: Found guilty

Outcome: Found guilty; McArthur pleaded guilty to the murder of Bridie Gargan, sparing the State the embarrassment of a trial, and was sentenced to life in jail. They confessed to the murder and rape of both women and were sentenced to life in jail, where they became Ireland's longest serving prisoners. #3 The Grangegorman Killings Mark Nash On the morning of March 7th 1997, Sylvia Shields and Mary Callinan were found dead in No.1 Orchard View, Grangegorman, Dublin 7; a terraced house used to provide accommodation for outpatients of St Brendan's Psychiatric Hospital.

Malcolm McArthur

Background Person

Plea: Guilty

Finding: Found guilty