Paul Wells Snr convicted of murder and given life sentence

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

Paul Wells Snr was convicted of murdering Kenneth O'Brien and sentenced to life in prison. The proceedings were reported on 6 November 2018.

Wells Snr admitted shooting Mr O'Brien and dismembering his body, but denied murder. He claimed he had shot him as they struggled during a row. The jury returned its guilty verdict after deliberating for just over five hours at the end of a three-week trial.

Mr O'Brien was shot in January 2016. His torso was recovered from a suitcase in the Grand Canal near Celbridge, Co Kildare. Wells Snr said he panicked about disposing of the body and used a borrowed chainsaw to dismember it.

The prosecution described the killing as a premeditated execution. Senior Counsel Sean Gillane said the post-mortem showed Mr O'Brien had been killed by a single shot from a gun pressed against the back of his head. Wells Snr claimed the row arose because Mr O'Brien had asked him to kill his partner Eimear Dunne and he had refused.

Defence counsel Michael O'Higgins said the evidence supported Wells Snr's account of a plot against Ms Dunne. He argued that if Wells Snr honestly believed the gun could have been used on him and fired in self-defence, the jury must acquit; an overreaction to an honest belief that his life was in danger could amount to manslaughter.

The trial heard that Mr O'Brien had transferred around €50,000 to Wells Snr's bank accounts while living in Australia. Mr O'Higgins said the prosecution had offered no reason for the killing other than a vague mention of money.