Tom Niland's 'remorseless' killers had combined 106 previous convictions, court hears
Eoin Reynolds
Three 'remorseless' criminals who beat pensioner Tom Niland to death in his home to steal his money had a combined total of 106 previous convictions, a court has heard.
One of the three, John Irving (31), had 57 convictions, including for burglary, theft, arson, criminal damage and endangerment. Inspector Paul Kilcoyne told the Central Criminal Court that in May 2013,
Irving and two other men burgled the homes of two elderly men in the early hours. One of the men was struck with a crowbar and his house was ransacked.
The second victim, an 82-year-old man who lived alone, awoke at 5am when a gas cylinder was thrown through his window.
Irving of Shanwar, Foxford, Co Mayo; Francis Harman (58) of Nephin Court, Killala Road, Ballina Co Mayo; and John Clarke (37) of Carrowkelly, Ballina all pleaded guilty to manslaughter earlier this year.
They attacked Mr Niland at his home at Doonflynn, Skryne, Co Sligo on January 18th 2022 and took his wallet, containing about €800.
After the assault, the three men drove to a wilderness area where they disposed of the wallet and gloves containing DNA evidence that later linked them to the crime.
They then drove to Ballina to settle a bill at Casey's Garage where they had been unable to pay when they filled up at the same station hours earlier.
Mr Niland, meanwhile, managed to cross the road and alerted neighbours despite having suffered brain injuries, a fracture to his eye socket and multiple rib fractures.
An ambulance took him to Sligo General Hospital where he initially seemed to improve before his condition deteriorated.
He was put on life support but died from his injuries about 20 months later.
All three defendants were initially charged with murder but the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) later lowered the charge to manslaughter.
Harman and Clarke pleaded guilty to manslaughter on July 7, the day their trials were due to begin. Irving initially pleaded not guilty to manslaughter but on day six of his trial, he changed his plea to guilty.
Having heard evidence today, Mr Justice Paul McDermott will sentence the trio this Thursday. Prosecutor Tony McGillicuddy SC said the DPP believes the offences warrant headline sentences of 15 to 20 years.
At Monday's hearing, Det Sgt Michael Kelly read out statements by Mr Niland's cousins Michael Walsh and Sandra Culkin. Ms Culkin described the victim as an independent, quietly spoken man who lived alone, worked hard and was a "treasured member of the community".
She said he was a devout Catholic and "never caused any harm to anyone and would regularly go out of his way to help anyone in need."
Coming to court, she said, was a trauma for which the family was not prepared. The three killers showed "no sign of remorse or guilt at any point" and caused them to endure multiple hearings that dragged out the suffering.
She described visiting Mr Niland in hospital every day, watching him suffering, struggling to breathe and with tears rolling down his face.
In court, she said, the family cried as they watched the final footage of Tom purchasing a newspaper at his local shop before driving home to the "nightmare that would unfold". He was robbed of his independence, his freedom and his life, she said.
"We feel only pain and the loss of an integral part of our family and our daily lives. Now we are left only with memories of the wonderful man he was."
Ms Culkin added: "We want the perpetrators of this cruel and vicious act to receive a sentence which reflects the impact this whole ordeal has had on our family and our community, and a sentence that recognises the magnitude of this brutal attack which led to Tom's untimely death."
Mr Walsh recalled seeing Mr Niland in a hospital bed. "I didn't recognise him, I walked past his bed before a nurse redirected me to where he was.
His injuries were so horrific that I couldn't believe it was him."
The family has been robbed of the "joy and warmth of his presence" leaving only "emptiness and sorrow," he said.
In evidence, Inspector Kilcoyne told Mr McGillicuddy that gardai were alerted to the assault by Mr Niland's neighbours, who found him wandering across the road from his house on the N59 between Ballina and Sligo covered in blood and with his eyes swollen shut.
Before succumbing to his injuries, Mr Niland made a statement in which he said he had been watching the news at 6pm when someone knocked on his door.
When he answered, he saw three men with their faces covered so that he could see only their eyes. They pushed him into his house and shouted, "Where is the money? We know you have money."
He tried to grab one of them but they punched him in the face, "all at the same time".
He fell but said the three continued punching and kicking him as he lay on the ground. One of them searched his pockets and took his money. They went on to ransack his home.
A doctor who treated him described his injuries as similar to what you would expect in a head-on crash or a fall from a ladder.
Although he died almost 20 months later, on September 30, 2023, State Pathologist Dr Heidi Okkers found that the cause of death was the blunt force trauma to the head suffered at the hands of his three attackers, Sgt Kilcoyne said.
Clarke had 22 previous convictions, one for theft and one for a drug offence.
The remaining 20 relate to road traffic offences.
Harman had 27 previous convictions including six for theft, five for drug offences, and one each for burglary, endangerment, criminal damage and a threat to kill.
In mitigation, Patrick Gageby SC, for Irving, said his client has a long history of ADHD and began taking drugs at a very early age. He said reports since Irving went into custody indicate that he has remorse for and insight into his offending.
He wrote a letter of apology to the victim's family.
Mr Gageby asked the court to consider that his client's list of previous convictions did not involve offences against the person. Mr Gageby said he doesn't dissent from the DPP's assessment of a headline sentence between 15 and 20 years but asked the court for leniency.
Desmond Dockery SC, for Clarke, said his client entered an early guilty plea and his previous offences are almost exclusively for road traffic offences.
A prison chaplain wrote a report for the court which states that Clarke's main concern now is for his relationship with his children. He has expressed remorse and wrote a letter to the Niland family.
Michael Bowman SC, for Harman, said his client also offers an apology although he appreciates "that is too little too late" for Mr Niland's family.
He said his client took responsibility for his actions and should benefit from his early plea of guilty.
