Dragos Nica found not guilty by reason of insanity of murder and committed

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

Dragos Nica was found not guilty by reason of insanity of the murder of Michael Gannon on 3 February 2016. He had pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity to the murder charge.

On 15 February 2016, Mr Justice Tony Hunt ordered his commitment to the Central Mental Hospital at the Central Criminal Court. The proceedings were reported on 15 February 2016. The judge said Nica required treatment in a designated centre and needed supervised medication.

Michael Gannon was stabbed to death at Mourne Park, Skerries, Co Dublin, on 14 November 2013. The jury had heard that he was babysitting his daughter Jade’s two young children and a neighbour’s child at her house. He opened the door after a child reported a man looking through the living-room window. The court heard that Nica delusionally believed Jade Gannon had deliberately poisoned him.

Dr Sally Linehan said Nica had paranoid schizophrenia characterised by delusions and, more commonly, hallucinations. She said he continued to express abnormal beliefs, although he recognised that medication had benefited him. He was receiving multidisciplinary treatment and remained in a secure unit.