A man who is serving a life sentence for the murder of a 24-year-old woman in 2002 has failed in his attempt to be transferred to a prison in Portugal.
Paulo Nascimento, who is originally from Portugal, pleaded guilty in 2003 to the murder of 24-year-old Grainne Dillon in Jury's Inn Hotel in Limerick on 5 January 2002.
The 31-year-old had been working as a night porter in Jury's for just six days before the murder.
He shot Ms Dillon after stealing €3,000 from the hotel.
He had claimed the Minister of Justice's failure to transfer him was unreasonable, arbitrary, capricious and breached his Constitutional rights and his rights under the European Convention on Human Rights.
He also claimed he had no family or friends in Ireland and his family were not able to visit him in prison in Ireland.
Ms Justice Elizabeth Dunne dismissed his case today saying the Minister for Justice had the discretion to decide whether or not to transfer a prisoner.
She also said he had an obligation to consider the manner in which a sentence would be served in another jurisdiction.
Ms Justice Dunne also said that by exercising his discretion, the Minister was not determining a sentence. She said the sentence was determined by the courts.
After the hearing, Grainne Dillon's mother, Pat, and her sister, Aoife, said they were delighted and relieved at the court's decision.
