A 20-year-old Corkman was yesterday jailed for life for the murder of a father of one at his home in Cork.
Frank Cunningham had denied murdering and robbing Patrick Walsh (28) at his home at Fairhill Drive, Cork, in May 2004. The jury of seven men and five women at the Central Criminal Court took just under three hours to come back with their verdict.
They found Cunningham, from Bride Valley View, Fairhill, guilty of the murder of Mr Walsh - he was also convicted of robbing the victim on the same occasion.
The mother of the victim, Nelly Walsh, took the stand after the verdict was delivered to say that she didn't hold a grudge against her son's killer.
"I have nothing bad to say about you. I am glad your parents came here to support you. We have spent the last 17 months in grief and couldn't get on with our lives until we had some closure."
The court heard that Cunningham had a number of previous convictions including a robbery at an internet café in Cork on the morning of the murder. Gardaí also indicated the accused had a drug problem and was abusing prescription drugs around the time of the killing.
Mr Justice Paul Carney, who presided over the two-week murder trial, yesterday thanked the jurors for their "careful attention" to detail, exempting them from future jury service for the rest of their lives.
He jailed Cunningham for life and said he would consider sentencing on his robbery conviction when the court sits again in Dublin on December 5th.
The prosecution told the court the main motive for the murder of Mr Walsh was robbery.
Assistant State Pathologist Dr Margaret Bolster testified that Mr Walsh was stabbed four times in the head and six times in the neck.
The jury also heard evidence from Cunningham's girlfriend at the time, Laura Heaphy. She said Cunningham rang her on May 27th, 2004, saying he and others had gone to the house for money and had never meant to kill Mr Walsh.