Be warned, if you're reading this article, I will assume you have listened to the first five episodes of Stolen Sister, the new podcast from RTÉ Documentary On One made in collaboration with the family of Elizabeth Plunkett.
Elizabeth was abducted, raped and murdered by John Shaw and Geoffrey Evans - Ireland’s first serial killers - in 1976.
Both men were originally charged with the murder, rape and false imprisonment of Ms Plunkett and Mayo woman Mary Duffy.
But a parole application from Shaw in 2023 revealed that he was never convicted for Ms Plunkett's murder despite previous reports.
Now, her family wants justice, and this very live investigation hopes to help them achieve their aim.
So, if you have any information on John Shaw and Geoffrey Evans, the Plunkett family has asked that you contact the podcast makers through documentaries@rte.ie.
This week's episode explains the recent events which brought the Plunkett family, namely sisters Kathleen Nolan and Bernie Plunkett, to the team at Doc On One.
It also brings listeners up to speed on where Elizabeth’s murderers are today.
Evans had a massive stroke in 2009 and was left in a coma for three years. When he eventually died in 2012, nobody claimed his body.
The Irish Prison Service buried him in an unmarked grave.
As for Shaw, in 38 years of being incarcerated, he has only received one family visit.
In 2016, he made an application to get temporary release from prison. This was rejected by the then Minister for Justice. However, in 2020, he was granted his request.
This means that for two days each year, he is allowed temporary escorted release from prison, but now he wants more.
To find out exactly what that means, you have to keep reading or hit play above on episode six of Stolen Sister.
A gentle reminder that this podcast contains some pretty distressing information, so read on (and listen) with care.
Parole
You see, temporary release privileges were not enough for Shaw, now he wants to be released for good.
For over 40 years, the Irish prison service has kept the Plunkett family abreast of Shaw and Evans' movements.
In 2023, Shaw started an application for parole, so the Parole Board reached out to the Plunkett family for a submission.
Because they were the family of a victim, the parole board said they could take part in the process and have their say. They could offer views on whether the prisoner should or should not be released, and possible conditions they would like to see attached to a parole.
The family were granted free legal aid, and their solicitor Aimée McCumiskey of James MacGuill and company helped them register as victims and fill out the relevant paperwork.
The family were definite - they did not want Shaw released.
This was the first time anybody had asked Elizabeth’s family to describe how they really felt - what they went through and the long-term impact of their sister’s horrific murder.
Bernie and Kathleen wrote their submissions in the knowledge that Shaw was permitted to read what they submitted.
Then their solicitor received some alarming news that would rewrite everything the Plunkett family knew about their sister’s case…
Because Shaw was never convicted of Elizabeth’s murder, a fact not even the Parole Board was aware of until they made the family complete their parole submission.
To find out how this happened, you need to hit play, but unfortunately, this was not the only shock the family were about to get.
I kind of put my heart and soul into it because I thought it would really help. And I pulled myself inside out, very personal things in now which I deeply regret
- Kathleen Nolan
Relevant victims
According to the Parole Board, their discovery meant that despite Shaw having confessed to Elizabeth’s murder, the Plunkett family were no longer "relevant victims."
They were to be excluded from the parole process and their submissions discounted.
Bernie described the discovery like a "slap in the face".
Because they were not going to be part of the parole process, the firm of MacGuill and Company was no longer being paid by the State to represent the family.
But the solicitors were so horrified by how the family had been treated that they agreed to keep working with them free of charge until they got answers.
It was this search for information that led them to the team at RTÉ Documentary On One.
While the Doc team was trying to establish Elizabeth’s cause of death, our producers made another startling discovery… the State never issued a death certificate for Elizabeth.
Why was no death certificate issued, you ask? Because unusual deaths require inquests, another thing Elizabeth was not afforded.
The procedures that normally happen did not happen for Elizabeth, all the things that a citizen is entitled to, they were not afforded to Elizabeth
- Kathleen Nolan
Correspondence
One of the above revelations would be earth-shattering to a family, so needless to say, the Plunkett family has a lot of questions for the powers that be.
Did Shaw get to read their original submission to the parole board? Why was there no conviction, no inquest and no death certificate issued for Elizabeth? And how could so much of this information have stayed hidden for so long?
Through some digging, it emerged that the DPP had entered a nolle prosequi for Shaw on all charges related to Elizabeth - translation, he was not acquitted but was also not charged with her murder. It is a stay on a prosecution meaning that the case can be reopened.
Why did they do this? Nobody knows.
Bernie and Kathleen tried to contact a number of Government agencies to raise awareness about their situation and get some answers. But every agency turned them away.
In November 2024, the Documentary at One team contacted the same State agencies, including the DPP, the Garda Commissioner and the Minister for Justice.
In essence, the DPP said that legally speaking, they are under no obligation to explain what happened to the family and had no intention to take further action against Shaw unless An Garda Síochána presented them with new information.
That is why it is imperative that if you have any information or witness testimony about this case, you need to come forward.
This could be Kathleen and Bernie’s only hope for justice for Elizabeth.
It got to the stage that the lie was told so many times. That everybody believes it's true. You know they're in jail for Liz. They’re not. Not one day has been served for Elizabeth
- Kathleen Nolan
The inquest
Needless to say, an inquest desperately needed to be held.
But when Wexford coroner, Dr Sean Nixon, went to An Garda Síochána, they told him they did not have the relevant files…
However, Dr Nixon had heard everything that had happened with Elizabeth's case and was determined to gather the evidence and make an inquest happen.
Thankfully, Doc On One was able to provide him with the relevant documents he needed to proceed.
Just before Christmas in 2024 Dr Nixon reached out to the Plunkett family’s Solicitor James McGuill; an inquest was finally going to be held in January 2025.
This week, the podcast will take listeners inside the Gorey courthouse alongside the Plunkett family as they try to secure Elizabeth the dignity and respect she deserves.
To learn the coroner's ruling you need to hit play above, but I will say this, it made national headlines back in January.
It's like being brought back to 1976 when we picked up Elizabeth's remains in Wexford from the hospital. So this is how we find ourselves today. Going to an inquest 49 years later- Bernie Plunkett
Listen to more from the Stolen Sister podcast here
