The son of a 61-year-old grandmother who was murdered by her daughter's partner and whose murder was covered up by her daughter, granddaughter and husband, has said he is devastated, heartbroken, disgusted and deceived.
Richard O'Connor was giving a victim impact statement in the sentencing hearing of five people in connection with the murder of his mother, Patricia O'Connor, in May 2017.
Kieran Greene, 35, who was the partner of Mrs O'Connor's daughter, was convicted of murder and has been given the mandatory life sentence.
Mrs O'Connor's husband, Gus O'Connor, their daughter, Louise O'Connor, their granddaughter, Stephanie O'Connor, and Stephanie's father, Keith Johnston are also all due to be sentenced for impeding the apprehension or prosecution of Greene, knowing or believing him to have carried out the murder.
Richard O'Connor said he had asked himself how people he called family could do such an unspeakable act.
He said his ability to trust people had changed and processing the amount of lies told to him had led to many sleepless nights.
Mr O'Connor said the brutality of the act, the cold hearted way in which his mother was dismembered and the disgusting way the murder was covered up, as well as finding out who was involved, would stay with him for the rest of his life.
He told the court his mother had been portrayed in a despicable way, trying to make out she was a horrible person when he and others who knew her knew she was not.
He said she was a kind, caring, loving person who was always willing to help and she had been taken away cruelly when she had so much life left to live.
His children had lost their nana far too early, due to the disgusting acts and lies of others, and she would not be able to pass on her love of gardening, art, baking and nature to them.
She had plans for the future, he said, and wanted to learn a new skill. But she was drained financially and unable to focus on what she wanted or needed.
He asked why she had to die due to the selfishness and laziness of others. He said some people were at the funeral quietly saying terrible things about her and he intended to honour his mother properly when this was all over.
Mr O'Connor said he had come to the conclusion he would never know the full truth about what had happened. He thanked everyone involved in getting justice for his mother.
He said photographs of his mother had been destroyed and throughout the trial he had seen no compassion, no care, no real emotion, no remorse spoken of by those involved.
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He said he would never forgive them for the fact that he did not get to say goodbye to his mother. He said he hoped the sentence would reflect the part that each of them had in what happened.
In response to a question from Gus O'Connor's barrister, Richard O'Connor said his father had lost everything.
Mrs O'Connor's sister, Colette Barry, said Mrs O'Connor's sisters and brothers were still in "disbelief" at her cruel and brutal murder.
She said it was shocking and disgusting to sit through seven weeks of a trial and see the faces of those involved with no emotion of any kind.
She said the family was deeply hurt by how Patricia's character had been cruelly tarnished by their spiteful lies.
Ms Barry said people who truly knew Patricia, knew a jolly woman with a loving nature.
Those memories could not be taken away, she said, but they were still trying to come to terms with the brutal and violent way her life came to an end.
She finished by saying: "Patricia, we love you always."
Greene's senior counsel, Conor Devally, said his client had a severe vulnerability through his schooling and adult life and, apart from the murder, he had led a blameless life.
He was "rather soft" and it would have been impossible to predict that he would end up in this position.
Counsel for Gus O’Connor, Mrs O’Connor’s husband, asked the court to be as lenient as possible with him.
Senior Counsel Micheál P O’Higgins said it was not in the public interest to send his 76-year-old client to jail for reporting his wife missing, even though he knew she was already dead.
Mr O’Higgins said he was a good man who made a terrible, terrible mistake and dealt with this matter in an appalling way.
The court heard he loved his wife although the relationship became strained.
At one point, Mrs O’Connor left the family home for ten years between 1983 and 1993 when their children were nine and five years old.
Mr O’Connor told psychologists that his daughter Louise was a demanding person and that he felt he was taken advantage of.
The court heard Louise controlled the household, including some finances and contact with her mother.
The psychologists’ report said the household was somewhat "toxic" and said both Mr and Mrs O’Connor appeared to be the victims of elder abuse.
Lawyers for Louise O’Connor said her children were the centre of her world and her behaviour was in an effort to preserve her family.
Senior Counsel Michael Bowman said what happened was not premeditated and events "spun out of control".
He said Ms O’Connor had five children aged from six to 22 and testimonials described her as a wonderful mother.
He asked the court to factor in the effect the sentence would have on Ms O’Connor’s family unit, albeit due to her own actions.
Mr Bowman said she was genuinely distraught and upset by death of her mother and the part she played, and she offered an unreserved apology for her actions.
Lawyers for Stephanie O'Connor pointed out that she was just 19 years old when these events occurred and handed in testimonials describing her as a wonderful young woman and a kind, caring soul.
The court heard Keith Johnston was a strong family man who was devoted to his children.
His Senior Counsel James Dwyer said his client acknowledged the devastation to the deceased and to her family.
All four will be sentenced on Friday.
