The mother of murdered teenager Keane Mulready-Woods, whose dismembered remains were found in Dublin and Drogheda, has told the Special Criminal Court that her son deserved to be treated as a human being, not something to be discarded.
Stephen Carberry, 48, with an address at Sandymount in Dublin 4, admitted collecting two sports bags with the 17-year-old's remains from the house in Drogheda where he was killed in January 2020 and dumping one bag in Dublin.
The father-of-six, who was on bail at the time and is currently serving a sentence for drug dealing, will be sentenced in March.
Ms Justice Karen O'Connor thanked Elizabeth Mulready today for her dignity and courage in standing up for her son and giving him a voice.
Keane Mulready-Woods was lured to his death by Paul Crosby, who led him to a house in Rathmullan Park in Drogheda, where the feared and violent criminal Robbie Lawlor was waiting for him.
He was murdered on 12 January 2020 and his remains dismembered.
His mother Elizabeth reported him missing the following day, but later that night Stephen Carberry left the house where he had been killed with two PUMA sports bags containing the teenager's remains.
The 48-year-old, whose brother Richie had been murdered as part of the Drogheda feud, put the bags into the boot of a stolen Volvo and drove to Dublin, where he dropped one of the bags at Moatview Gardens in Priorswood.
The car with the second bag of remains was subsequently burned out at Trinity Terrace in North Dublin city.
A convicted drug dealer, Stephen Carberry had three phones at the time and had been in contact with the killer, Robbie Lawlor. Lawlor was shot dead in Belfast four months later.
Carberry's DNA was found on the sports bag but when he was arrested and questioned, he told gardaí that Lawlor may have handed it to him after he had bought the bag at the Liffey Valley Shopping Centre.
However, gardaí checked with every shop in the centre and discovered none of them sold that type of bag.
Carberry's Defence Counsel said the murder of his brother Richie had a profound effect on Carberry and that there had been threats to and attempts on his life as well.
Michael Bowman said there was no evidence that he had "any hand, act or part" in the murder of Keane Mulready-Woods and that Robbie Lawlor was a very dangerous individual and "not the sort of person you could say no to".
In a victim impact statement, the mother of Keane Mulready-Woods, Elizabeth Mulready, said the way her son was taken from her and what was done after his death has caused a level of trauma she would carry for the rest of her life.
"My child's body was cut up, scattered and treated as if he was nothing and did not matter," she said.
"The cruelty and inhumanity is something no parent should face. Knowing he was left in different places is a constant unbearable torment."
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'I will never stop grieving him'
She said she was haunted by images and the thoughts of what was done to her son. She said she has lost her peace of mind, her sense of safety and her ability to live normally.
"Ordinary things are extremely difficult. Life is now split - before and after Keane," she said.
"Our family has been destroyed. His siblings lost their brother in the most brutal way imaginable. Family occasions, birthdays and holidays are no longer times of joy."
She also said that after her son was killed, the "choices made to further disrespect him and harm us were a deliberate act to deny us dignity closure and peace".
"Every discovery felt like losing my son all over again. I will never stop grieving him. The pain at the way he suffered I will carry for rest of my life," she said.
"He deserved to be treated as a human being not something to be discarded."
She also asked the court to consider the lifelong impact and the unimaginable cruelty of what was done.
The presiding judge, Ms Justice Karen O'Connor, told Ms Mulready that the three judges could not imagine the pain she and her family were going through and that that they understood it would live with them for the rest of their lives.
"We understand as much as we can, the dignity having been denied," she said.
"You have demonstrated great dignity on behalf of your son and the courageous way you have given him a voice.
"It is obvious you have carried an active part as a mother standing up for him, giving him a voice and we are grateful for that insight in to the impact of the loss of your son."
In his victim impact statement, which was also read to the court today, Keane's father, Barry Woods questioned why "fully-grown men with families of their own" would "take a 17-year-old boy" and dump his body parts as they did.
"We had to have his funeral with only half his body parts in his coffin. Horrible," he said.
Mr Woods said he was still "haunted" by this "savage murder" and still has nightmares about what happened. He said his sone never got to see his 18th or 21st birthday.
Stephen Carberry pleaded guilty to a charge that on a date between 13 January and 15 January 2020, both dates inclusive, within the State, knowing or believing another person to be guilty of the murder of Keane Mulready-Woods or some other arrestable offence, did without reasonable excuse, an act with intent to impede the apprehension or prosecution of that other person.
A second man, Glen Bride of Mount Olive Park, Kilbarrick in Dublin, is also currently before the Special Criminal Court, having also pleaded guilty to assisting in the movement and disposal of the murdered teenager's body parts.
Three other men, Paul Crosby, Gerard Cruise and Ged McKenna, have already been convicted and jailed for their roles in the murder.
