New witness has emerged in Joe Deacy case

A new witness living outside Ireland has emerged in the investigation into the violent death of a young man from England while on holiday in Mayo nine years ago, an inquest has heard.

Joe Deacy (21) from St Albans in Hertfordshire sustained fatal injuries as a result of an incident near Swinford on August 12, 2017. He was brought to Mayo General Hospital in Castlebar after being discovered lying on the ground outside a house at 6.30am by a passing cyclist.

The victim, who had strong family ties in the west of Ireland, was subsequently transferred to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin where he was pronounced dead the following day.

Gardaí launched a murder investigation after post-mortem results showed he had suffered blunt force trauma to the head.

A sitting of Dublin District Coroner’s Court on Tuesday heard that gardaí had recently travelled outside the jurisdiction after a new witness in the case had come to light.

Inspector Naomi de Rís told the hearing that new lines of inquiry have emerged as a result of the development.

Insp de Rís told coroner Cróna Gallagher that Mr Deacy’s family, including his mother, Alison Theobald who attended the hearing via videolink, were being kept briefed of any progress in the investigation.

Dr Gallagher granted an application by Insp de Rís for a further adjournment of the hearing under Section 25 (1) of the Coroners Act as criminal proceedings are under consideration.

The coroner listed the case for a further update on April 15, 2027.

Mr Deacy, who considered himself to be from Mayo – the home county of his paternal grandparents – was a regular visitor to the west of Ireland where he stayed with relatives and had applied for an Irish passport shortly before his death.

He had spent the evening before he was assaulted socialising in Kiltimagh before being dropped with his friend to the house in Swinford where he was later found.

He had sent a video via social media to his second cousin, Michelle Deacy, with whom he had been staying, at around 3.45am but what happened over the next few hours remains unclear.

Other individuals in the house on the night have strenuously denied knowing anything about events that led to Mr Deacy’s death.

Two people – a male and a female – were arrested in 2024 on suspicion of withholding information from gardaí.

The deceased’s parents, Adrian Deacy and Alison Theobald, have issued a number of public appeals for people with information about their son’s death to pass on details of what they know to gardaí.

It emerged earlier this week that Mr Deacy’s organs had been donated for transplant which had saved the lives of six other people.

One of the beneficiaries of the donated organs, Aine Mae O’Mahony (45) said lives will have been changed by the decision of Mr Deacy’s family to donate his organs.

The Clare woman, who lost her sight at the age of 25, praised the deceased’s “extraordinary legacy” after receiving a combined kidney and pancreas transplant.

Ms O’Mahony also expressed hope that someone with information about Mr Deacy’s murder would come forward and break the silence that has surrounded the case for his family.

“I can’t imagine the pain and suffering they have endured these last nine years and they deserve to have justice. It’s never too late for people to come forward,” she added.