Courts

Farmer (73) victim of unlawful killing after ‘total avulsion of the heart and liver’, inquest finds

Anthony O’Mahony of Ardoughter, Co Kerry died on April 4th, 2017 and his neighbour Michael Ferris was found guilty of manslaughter after he admitted driving teleporter at Mr O’Mahony’s car

Michael Ferris has been found not guilty of murder but guilty of the manslaughter of a neighbouring farmer in Co Kerry. Photograph: Domnick Walsh

Anne Lucey
Wed Mar 15 2023 - 15:11

A verdict of unlawful killing has been brought in at the resumed inquest into the death of Anthony O’ Mahony, aged 73, of Ardoughter, Ballyduff, Tralee at the Coroners’ Court in Listowel, Co Kerry.

The late Mr O’Mahony, a bachelor died at Rattoo, Ballyduff on the morning of April 4th, 2017.

The verdict is in accordance with the verdict of manslaughter at the Central Criminal Court in Tralee of December 2018, coroner for north Kerry Helen Lucey said.

State Pathologist Dr Margot Anne Bolster at the opening of the inquest in January outlined the cause of death as “polytrauma and total avulsion of the heart and liver” due to multiple penetrating wounds inflicted by the prongs of a teleporter.

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Mr O’Mahony a tillage farmer had been on his way to his land at Rattoo, on the morning of April 4th when he was killed. The laneway leading to the land was full of debris and gardaí and medical personnel found Mr O’Mahony in the driver’s seat of his car in the ditch of the lane way with “horrific” injuries and debris all around.

His neighbour Michael Ferris told gardaí and neighbours at the scene that he “deliberately drove” a teleporter at Mr O’Mahony’s car, the inquest was told.

Michael Ferris was conveyed to Listowel Garda station and he was formally arrested and charged with murder the next day, April 5th, 2017. The jury at the Central Criminal Court returned a verdict of manslaughter on December 3rd, 2018, the inquest heard.

At his sentencing in December 2018, Michael Ferris then aged 63 who said he had snapped because of the ongoing noise from the crow banger was jailed for six years with the final year suspended, and the sentence was backdated to 2017.

However, after an outcry by the family of Mr O’Mahony, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) appealed the sentence as too lenient and a nine year sentence was subsequently imposed.

Sources say Mr Ferris, a dairy farmer who is serving at the Midlands Prison is due for release later this year and he may return to his farm in Rattoo.

Ann O'Carroll, a niece of the late Anthony O'Mahony (73), speaking to the media outside the Central Criminal Court in Dublin after Michael Ferris was sentenced to prison after being found guilty of the manslaughter of Mr O'Mahony in Rattoo, Ballyduff, Co Kerry, in April 2017. Photograph: Laura Hutton

The inquest on Wednesday heard that the late Mr O’Mahony came from a close and united and hard working family of two brothers and one sister. The two brothers farmed together and each day Angela Houlihan, his sister, would bring Anthony his dinner in the middle of the day, the inquest heard.

In her deposition read to the court by Garda Inspector Tim O’Keeffe, Angela Houlihan said Anthony had the same routine every day. At 7.45am each morning he would leave Ardoughter to be down in Rattoo for 8am. Fifteen years ago, he had fallen out with Mike Ferris but they never bothered each other, Ms Houlihan said.

He would call each day to shop for his paper and cigarettes and she would bring his dinner to him at 1.45pm, staying to chat and clear up after the meal. That last day, April 3rd, 2017 she left at 3pm and Anthony was reading his paper and smoking his cigarette in the kitchen.

“It was the last time I spoke to him,” her deposition said.

Anthony would return to Rattoo at 7.30pm or 8pm to take up the crow banger. The crows were starting to eat the corn at Rattoo, he had told her.

In his deposition, Garda Pat Naughton of Tralee Garda Station, called to the scene at Rattoo that morning, found the navy Peugeot car in the ditch on the laneway and a man in the driver’s seat. The injuries this man received were horrific “and he was unrecognisable”, the garda found. He could see immediately he was dead and it was an obvious crime scene. Listowel ambulance paramedics Jimmy Sheehan and Sonia O’Connor dispatched at 8.36am in their depositions also found injuries unsustainable with life.

Dr Richard O’Reilly GP found no vital signs and death was confirmed at 9.15am.

John Heaslip retired detective garda sergeant, in his deposition said he was accompanied by Supt Dan Keane and Det Garda John Brennan and they ascertained a heavy duty teleporter had been involved.

[ Farmer who killed neighbour with teleporter sees jail term increased from five to nine years ]

The pathologist’s report at the opening of the inquest in January had run to 19 pages, the coroner noted on Wednesday.

“I want to emphasise that Dr Bolster when she gave her evidence said that death was instantaneous and Mr O’Mahony did not suffer and I do hope some comfort can be taken from that,” she said.

This was a close and united family and the two brothers farmed together. The entire family were very hard working, she said.

“The late Anthony led a hard working and simple life,” Ms Lucey said.

There was an ancient round tower at Rattoo which was “somewhat on a par with Clonmacnoise,” but it had never seen such a killing, the coroner remarked.

“In Rattoo there is a lovely round tower somewhat like Clonmacnoise and if stones could speak I doubt if a more horrific death had been seen there,” the coroner said.

“This was a horrific death and the only consolation is Mr O’Mahony did not suffer,” she said.

Ms Lucey expressed her deepest sympathy to his siblings, nephews and nieces and friends.

The coroner also thanked the gardaí and medical personnel who had to attend the scene.

“This was not pleasant for the gardaí and the ambulance personnel,” she said.

Inspector Tim O’Keeffe on behalf of the gardaí and the emergency services also extended his sympathy.

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