Jozef Puska has been sentenced to the mandatory term of life imprisonment for the murder of 23-year-old school teacher Ashling Murphy.
At a hearing on Friday afternoon before the sentence was handed down, the court heard statements from Ms Murphy's sister Amy, Mother Kathleen and Ms Murphy's boyfriend Ryan Casey. Ms Murphy's father Ray and brother Cathal were also present in court.
Ryan Casey told the court that it does not make sense to him that someone "so insignificant, the lowest of the low, a burden to society, can completely destroy so many lives by taking a person who is the complete opposite."
Mr Casey described Ashling's warmth, compassion, respect and detailed their plans for the future - to get married, build a home together and raise a family.
Pure evil
Mr Casey turned towards Puska to tell him: "I do not care where you end up, nor what happens to you after today. You smirked, smiled and showed zero remorse during your trial, which sums you up as the person you really are, the epitome of pure evil.
"But you will never ever harm or touch another woman ever again... when your day of reckoning comes, may you be in hell a whole half hour before god even knows you are dead."
Amy told the hushed courtroom that their lives were "enormously enriched because of Ashling," who she described as charismatic and compassionate with an infectious laugh.
"She never sought to be the centre of attention, but she could strike up a conversation with anyone and make everyone feel they had a friend in her."
Puska (33), with an address at Lynally Grove, Mucklagh, Co Offaly, had pleaded not guilty to murdering Ms Murphy at Cappincur, Tullamore, Co Offaly on January 12th, 2022.
A jury convicted him of the murder last week, finding that he stabbed Ms Murphy eleven times in the neck and slashed her once with the edge of a blade before leaving her to die in the thick thorns and brambles by the side of the canal towpath between Tullamore town and Digby Bridge, where a monument in her memory is now placed.
After the speeches were completed, Mr Justice Tony Hunt told Puska that there is only one sentence to hand down, which he said is "richly deserved".
He lamented that he does not have the power to impose a minimum period to be served and said if he had the power, a whole life-term would have to be considered in this case.
He said that before Puska is considered for release the person making that decision would have to take into account that we still don't know why Puska murdered Ashling.
Mr Justice Hunt concluded by saying, "very well, you may take him away," before six prison officers led Puska to the cell area.
Evidence
Puska was placed at the scene by the presence of his distinctive green and black bicycle a few feet from Ms Murphy's body.
He had been captured on CCTV cycling the same bicycle around Tullamore earlier that afternoon, following two women before heading towards the canal where he isolated Ashling Murphy, who was walking alone.
Puska's DNA was found on the bike as was his fingerprint and his DNA was under Ms Murphy's fingernails.
The prosecution argued that the DNA under the nails showed that Ashling had scratched her attacker as she tried to save her own life.
When gardaí spoke to Puska the day after the murder his face and hands were covered in scratches that were consistent with him crawling through the thorns and briars by the side of the towpath where he murdered Ms Murphy.
In his testimony to the trial, Puska claimed that he was cycling when he was attacked and stabbed by a masked man. He claimed the same man then attacked and stabbed Ms Murphy before running away.
In what prosecution counsel Anne-Marie Lawlor SC described as a "foul and contemptible fabrication", Puska claimed that he then tried to help Ashling by pulling her scarf up around the wound to her neck.
He said that he realised he could not help her and crawled through the briars to an adjoining field where he fell unconscious for about four hours.
The jury rejected his version of events.
No motive has been offered for the killing and lawyers in the case and Ms Murphy's family have stressed repeatedly that there was no connection between Puska and Ms Murphy, despite internet rumours of a connection.
Pain
In a lengthy statement to the court, Mr Casey frequently had to stifle sobs and drink from a bottle of water as he described his love for Ashling and the life they planned to build together. He said he never knew there was a pain as severe as the "physical and emotional pain that comes with losing the most important person in your life, and especially in such a horrific, senseless, and just beyond evil act by such an insignificant lowest of the low, waste of life."
Mr Casey told the court about his first meeting with Ashling aged just 15 and how he immediately knew there was something special about her. They started dating in late 2016 and fell in love.
They planned to move to Galway in late summer of 2022 and to travel later to Dubai for two years where Ashling dreamed of teaching before returning home to build their home and start a family. They knew where they would build the house and were planning to meet an architect to begin the planning process.
He said: "We often discussed how many kids we’d love to have and how they’d all be mighty little hurlers or camogie players and even better musicians."
Future together
They planned their wedding day, what engagement ring he would buy for her, her dress, who would be in the bridal party, the church, the reception, "even down to what our wedding song would be, which Ashling always wanted to be "Can You Feel the Love Tonight" from the Lion King."
He said: "I would have married Ashling a long time ago if I could, and I wish I had, but we just didn’t get the chance to reach that part of our plan."
Mr Casey said he had lost his partner in life and his closest and best friend. "I’ve lost my parents-in-law, a sister-in-law, a brother-in-law, the privilege of marrying into the Murphy and Leonard family, a role model for my little sister, future grandchildren for my parents and Ashling’s parents and great grandchildren for my grandparents.
"Everything that I ever wanted in life, every single plan that I had in life is now gone and cannot be brought back. Ashling was simply everything to me, and this is what I’ve lost, I’ve simply lost everything, Ashling was just everything."
Describing his "heaven on earth" relationship with Ms Murphy, he said it was "filled with nothing but so much love, happiness, joy, adventure, trust and most importantly, respect." They had grown up together, "experienced so much" and "made so many beautiful memories".
"Honestly, Ashling knew me better than I knew myself," he said. "She could literally read me like a book, know exactly what mood I was in and knew exactly what to do or say to cheer me up and I know for a fact this went both ways and there was nothing I loved more than cheering her up when she was having a bad day.
"In the entire time that we were together, we never had one single disagreement or one single little argument which is something I loved about our relationship. I like to think that it was down to the fact that we both loved and respected each other too much to even consider having an argument."
He said his mind keeps going back to the last time they met on January 10th, two days before the murder. She called to his house to deliver some shopping, but they couldn't share a hug as he was isolating due to an outbreak of covid among his family.
Final hug
He said: "There was brief moment where I was standing beside her, and she was standing at her car door just before she sat in, where we just stood looking into each other’s eyes for about 3 to 4 seconds until we both just pouted from not being able to give each other a hug and a kiss then laughed and said our goodbyes and said to each other what we always have said to each other every single night for 5 years straight, ”I love you”. And I ask myself each and every time, why didn’t I just give her a huge hug and never let her go."
He said it makes no sense to him that somebody "so insignificant, worthless, the lowest of the low, a burden to society and overall, a waste of life, can completely and permanently destroy so many people's lives by taking the life of a person who is the complete opposite." Ashling's life, he said, was filled with meaning, dreams, love, compassion, respect. She was "a person who contributed to society in the best ways possible".
She had more life and love to give, Mr Casey said, and was "taken from us far too soon".
He said he is sickened that Puska was "fully supported in terms of social housing, social welfare, free medical care for over ten years" yet never having held down a job and "never once contributing to society in any way shape or form can commit such a horrendous evil act of incomprehensible violence on such a beautiful, loving and talented person."
Ashling, by contrast, worked for the State as a teacher, "educating the next generation and she represented everything that is good about Irish society." Mr Casey said we have to put the safety of "everybody in this country who works hard, pays taxes, raises families and overall contributes to society first".
The "horrific, senseless and completely evil taking of Ashling's life is our life sentence," he said. "A sentence in which there is no parole."
Turning to face Puska, Mr Casey said: "You have no idea, nor did you ever and will never have any idea, the level of connection and love that Ashling and I shared." He said Puska has no idea what he stole from them and how much Ashling meant to the people who loved her.
"Because of you, I've lost everything I've ever wanted in life... I'll never get to marry my soulmate... I will never hear her voice again... I will never see her smile again... I will have to somehow carry on without her... I will have to remember her longer than I've known her."
Amy told the court that she spent years "listening, watching and adoring over the young girl, my sister, who grew up to become the soil that kept our family and friends nourished with positivity, humour and hope." Ashling, she said, was the glue that bound the family together.
She took after their mother with her warm smile and her dad with her "cheeky wit and wink". "Ashling brought the best out of us. Our parents instilled a strong work ethic in Ashling, and she knew the value of a pound. They taught her that nothing is handed to you in this life and if she wanted something she would have to earn it and that she did."
Despite being the youngest, Ashling was everybody's role model. "She had such an endearing personality and was so generous with her time, her love and her talents, giving so much of herself to others."
"Musicians of all ages were welcomed into our home every week to learn and absorb Ashling's talent and passion for music and listen to her stories, hanging onto her every word. The eerie quietness that now remains in the house is deafening."
Ashling had taken up a post as a primary school teacher in Durrow National School three months before her death and was "reaping the rewards" of her hard work.
She was like "a second mammy" to her 28 students and "immersed herself in all things the school life had to offer, helping out with the school choir and music groups whenever she could, always encouraging the chilren with genuine affection and enthusiasm."
During the trial, a pink bobble hat that Ashling wore when she died was mentioned frequently by witnesses and by gardai reviewing the CCTV that showed her last movements. Amy revealed that the hat was a gift from their grandfather, with whom Ashling shared a special bond, on his last Christmas alive
She said: "Our lives were enormously enriched because of Ashling. She was charismatic, compassionate and her infectious laugh could light up any room.
As siblings do, she could roast myself or Cathal with some of her best one-liners, however she never sought to be centre of attention. She had the ability to strike up conversation with anyone irrespective of their age and made them feel like they genuinely had a friend in her. Her zest for life was palpable to anybody that was in her company."
