Rafal Karaczyn pleads guilty to manslaughter as murder trial continues

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

Rafal Karaczyn pleaded guilty to the manslaughter of his wife, Natalia Karaczyn, and not guilty to her murder. The proceedings at the Central Criminal Court were reported on 6 May 2021.

The charges concerned her death at the family home in Crozon Park, Sligo, between 29 April and 1 May 2018. Karaczyn was 35 and his wife was 30.

Opening the trial, prosecuting counsel Conor Devally SC said Natalia Karaczyn had returned home after a night out when her husband entered her bedroom. A row erupted and he strangled her, counsel said.

Defence counsel Brendan Grehan SC said Karaczyn accepted that he unlawfully killed his wife by strangling her and was solely responsible for her death. Karaczyn also admitted lying to her sister and gardaí about what happened.

Grehan said the issue for the jury was Karaczyn’s mental state when he strangled his wife. The trial was continuing before Justice Eileen Creedon.