Murder of Ashling Murphy
Murder victim Ashling Murphy (23) on her graduation from Mary Immaculate College in October 2021.
Date12 January 2022 (2022-01-12)
Time3:31 pm (GMT)
LocationCappincur, Tullamore, County Offaly, Ireland
Coordinates53°16′43″N 7°28′48″W / 53.27868°N 7.48010°W / 53.27868; -7.48010
ConvictedJozef Puška[1]
Trial17 October – 9 November 2023
ConvictionsMurder
SentenceLife imprisonment

Ashling Murphy (6 July 1998 – 12 January 2022) was an Irish primary school teacher and traditional Irish musician who was murdered in January 2022 while walking on the towpath of the Grand Canal at Cappincur, outside Tullamore, County Offaly, Ireland.[2][3] Her killing received extensive media coverage, inspired vigils throughout Ireland and internationally, and intensified debates about violence against women. The President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, the Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, and other Irish government ministers attended her funeral.

In the days following Murphy's death, the Gardaí (Irish police) questioned 31-year-old Slovak Romani father-of-five Jozef Puška; he was subsequently arrested and charged with her murder. In November 2023, following a three-week trial at Dublin's Central Criminal Court, a jury found Puška guilty by unanimous verdict. The jury heard that he had stabbed Murphy 11 times in the neck and slashed her neck with the edge of a blade, before leaving her to die in a ditch.[4][1] He was sentenced to life imprisonment.[5]

In June 2023, Puška's wife as well as two of his brothers and their wives—all Slovakian nationals in their 30s—were arrested and charged with withholding information relating to the murder investigation or of impeding the arrest of a suspect. In December 2023, all five were sent forward to face trial at the Central Criminal Court.

Victim

Born on 6 July 1998 in Blue Ball near Tullamore, County Offaly,[6] Ashling Murphy was the youngest child of Raymond and Kathleen Murphy; she had two siblings, a brother Cathal and a sister Amy.[7][8][9] From 2011 to 2017, she studied at Sacred Heart Secondary School, a Catholic girls' school in Tullamore. She then attended Mary Immaculate College in Limerick, graduating in October 2021 with a Bachelor of Education degree in Primary Teaching.[10] She taught first-class pupils at Durrow National School in Durrow, County Offaly, from March 2021 until the day of her death.[11][12][13]

Murphy's parents both played traditional Irish music; her father Raymond had played with The Fureys and with the band Best Foot Forward.[8] Murphy herself had played the fiddle and tin whistle since childhood, had begun learning the uilleann pipes, and had performed around the country at traditional music festivals and with the national orchestra of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann.[9][14][15] She had also played camogie for her local Kilcormac/Killoughey Camogie Club and at collegiate level for Mary Immaculate College.[16][17] She and her partner Ryan Casey had been in a relationship for over five years by the time of her death, and had planned to marry.[18]

Funeral

Murphy's funeral took place on 18 January 2022 at St. Brigid's Church, Mountbolus, County Offaly. It was attended by the President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, and the Taoiseach, Micheál Martin. Other public figures in attendance included the Minister for Justice, Helen McEntee, the Minister for Education, Norma Foley, and the Minister for the Arts, Catherine Martin.[19] Murphy's former first-class pupils from Durrow National School formed a guard of honour outside the church, each holding a graduation photograph of her and a red rose.[20] Schools and colleges around the country observed a minute's silence at 11 am in her memory.[21]

Mourners at the funeral mass were told that her family and partner had been "robbed of [their] most precious gift."[20][22][23] In a social media post, Murphy's sister Amy described her as "the light of our lives and heart of the family".[20] Her partner Ryan Casey said: "She was my soulmate, she is my soulmate, she will always be my soulmate. She is the greatest love of my life."[22] Murphy was buried in Lowertown Cemetery, Mountbolus.[24]

Perpetrator

Murphy's convicted killer, Slovak Romani father-of-five Jozef Puška, was born in May 1990.[25] He grew up in Lučivná, a ski resort village in the Poprad District of northern Slovakia, in the foothills of the High Tatra Mountains.[26] Residents of Lučivná who knew him in his youth described him as a mild-mannered boy from a normal family.[26] He left secondary school a year early, aged 16, and went to work on construction sites in Bratislava. He then lived in the Czech Republic, where he worked on construction sites in Prague. In 2013, with his wife and two children, he moved to Ireland, where other family members already lived: Puška's parents lived in Crumlin, Dublin, and his brothers and their families lived in Tullamore.[27][28] Puška and his wife initially lived in Dublin's north inner city before moving to Tullamore in 2015. They had three more children born in Ireland, one while living in Dublin and two more after they moved to Tullamore.[26][28]

At the time of Murphy's murder, Puška was living at an address in Mucklagh, around 5 km southwest of Tullamore, that he shared with an extended family of 23 people—including his wife and their five children, two brothers, their wives, and their children.[29][28] He was unemployed and in receipt of a social welfare disability allowance. Neither he nor his wife could drive, and he typically travelled by taxi, bus, or bicycle.[30][28][27]

Puška had no previous convictions for violent crime,[28] although he had been a person of interest in two other assaults on women, one in Prague and the other in the UK.[31] As a juvenile in Slovakia, he had been placed on probation for having consensual sex with a girl aged under 15.[32][31] He did not know Murphy prior to the attack,[12] and had no known motive for murdering her.[33] Online rumours that he attacked her because she had reported him to the child and family agency Tusla were debunked during the trial.[34] He had become active on dating apps in the weeks before her murder, and had interacted with up to eight Irish women in the Midlands area.[32][31] Gardaí speculated that he may have intended to sexually assault a woman, and may have attacked Murphy with sexual intentions, but may have killed her after she fought back.[35]

Murder

The Grand Canal in Tullamore, near where Ashling Murphy was killed.

On 12 January 2022, the day of the murder, CCTV evidence showed Puška cycling from his home in Mucklagh to Tullamore at around 12:25 pm, wearing a black jacket and black tracksuit bottoms with a white stripe and a Tommy Hilfiger logo. He was riding a distinctive Falcon Storm mountain bike with bright green forks.[36]

Before killing Murphy, Puška followed two other women in Tullamore that afternoon. CCTV evidence showed him cycling slowly behind one woman, Beata Borowska, as she walked along Church Road to the Tesco supermarket in the Cloncollig Retail Park at around 1:38 pm. Puška ceased following Borowska after she entered the supermarket, but shortly afterwards began following another woman, Anne Marie Kelly, as she was walking her dog on Church Road around 2 pm.[33] Feeling apprehensive, Kelly tried to evade Puška by taking a route beside the Grand Canal, choosing the muddy, grassy side of the canal without a paved walkway in the hopes that he would not attempt to cycle there. However, Puška continued to follow her, walking behind her while pushing his bike, until she reached Digby Bridge, where other people were present. At that point, Kelly did not see Puška again.[37] Another local woman, Emma Doyle, recalled seeing a man matching Puška's description cycling a mountain bike with bright green forks on the canal towpath as she walked her dog after 3 pm.[38]

Murphy finished work at Durrow National School—approximately 8 km northwest of Tullamore—at 2:30 pm. Her car, a red SEAT Córdoba,[39] was captured on CCTV departing the school car park at 2:37 pm and driving via the N52 to the Daingean Road car park, close to the canal bank.[33] She was wearing a navy jacket, navy leggings, a GAA camogie top, a white T-shirt, a gray scarf, blue Nike runners, and a pink woolen hat with a brown bobble. She also wore a ring, sunglasses, and a gold necklace with the name "Ashling" on it.[40][38][41] She was additionally wearing a Fitbit Versa 3 watch with an activity tracker linked to her smartphone.[42] Geolocation and activity data retrieved from her devices showed that she began walking at 2:51 pm, walked westward over a bridge, and then continued eastward along the canal, in the direction of Digby Bridge. She was last captured on CCTV at 2:55 pm.[43] Anne Marie Kelly stated that the final person she met on her walk was a woman in her 20s, matching Murphy's description, who talked to her in a friendly manner and petted her dog.[44][39]

Data from Murphy's devices showed that she crossed Digby Bridge at 3:16 pm, having walked around 3 km, and then headed westward back towards the Daingean Road car park.[42] Five minutes later, at 3:21 pm, her activity tracker recorded erratic fluctuations consistent with a violent attack. Murphy's heart rate decreased rapidly until 3:27 pm, and the activity tracker ceased recording a heartbeat at 3:31 pm.[45] Puška is believed to have overpowered Murphy and dragged her off the towpath into a steep ditch filled with briars, where he stabbed her repeatedly in the neck.[46] A state pathologist Sally Anne Collis later stated that Murphy suffered 11 stab wounds to the right side of her neck, which severed her carotid artery and jugular vein and damaged both sides of her voice box, leaving her unable to speak or make any intelligible sound.[47][48] She also had a 9.2 cm (approx 3.6 inch) cut across her neck. Although it was initially reported that Murphy died from strangulation,[49] the pathologist stated that she died from acute blood loss caused by her injuries.[38][50][51] Murphy additionally suffered cuts to her hands, presumably while trying to defend herself. Other abrasions and bruises were noted on her body during her post-mortem examination the following day.[48]

Two female joggers, Jenna Stack and Aoife Marron, also primary school teachers exercising by the canal after work, witnessed the attack. They stated in court that they had noticed a mountain bike in a hedge alongside the towpath, and heard the sounds of rustling and breaking branches in the ditch beneath. Believing that someone may have fallen off the bike, Marron shouted: "Are you okay? Do you need help?" Stack stepped off the towpath, looked through the hedge into the ditch, and observed a man, later identified as Puška, crouching over a woman and holding her down in the undergrowth. Stack stated that she could not see the woman's upper body, but observed her legs kicking vigorously in a scissors motion, which she interpreted as a "cry for help".[52] Stack called out "What are you doing?” and Puška shouted "Get away."[53] Believing that the man was attempting to rape the woman, Stack shouted at Puška to "Get off her" and said she was calling the Gardaí. Stack and Marron then ran for help, as neither was carrying a phone.[54][55] At Digby Bridge, the women encountered two male cyclists and two male Waterways Ireland workers.[56] The cyclists immediately rode to the location described by the women and discovered Murphy's motionless body in a ditch, her face covered with matted hair and blood.[33] The two Waterways Ireland workers also went to the scene on foot. One testified in court that Murphy's hand was "snow white," which he took as an indication she was already dead.[56]

One of the cyclists, local man Enda Molloy, phoned Tullamore Garda Station at 3:34 pm.[57] Two Gardaí arrived at the scene ten minutes later, and Molloy indicated the location of Murphy's body in the ditch.[38][58] Gardaí unzipped Murphy's jacket and began efforts to resuscitate her, taking turns doing chest compressions.[58] Paramedic Paul McCabe stated that his team received notification of the incident at 3:49 pm and arrived at the scene at 3:56 pm.[59] The paramedics worked with Gardaí to move Murphy's body out of the ditch and onto the canal towpath, to facilitate attempts at resuscitation. McCabe observed numerous open wounds on the right side of Murphy's neck as she was being moved to the towpath. He cut open her top and attached the pads of a defibrillator to her chest, but a monitor showed that Murphy was then in a "non-shockable rhythm" with "no signs of life." From his analysis of her condition—she had no pulse, had pale and cold skin, and had dilated and fixed pupils—McCabe concluded that Murphy was already dead. After a discussion with the other paramedics and Gardaí at the scene, he decided to cease resuscitation efforts and covered Murphy's body with a blanket.[36][43][59] A smartphone retrieved from her pocket showed a time of 4:15 pm. A fitness app on the phone had been active for a time of 1.24.20, recording a distance of 3.2 km covered.[60] The area was declared a crime scene at 5:34 pm.[61] A Garda and Murphy's brother Cathal identified her body, and she was officially pronounced dead at 5:51 pm.[62] Members of the Garda Technical Bureau arrived at 7:08 pm.[61]

After the killing, Puška hid in a ditch until dark.[57] Later that night, a number of eyewitnesses observed a man matching his description travelling by foot along various roads in the area.[37] CCTV footage captured Puška at 9:14 pm arriving at the home of another Slovakian national, Rostislav Pokuta, who later testified that he knew Puška and his brothers through his job as a school bus driver.[63] Pokuta used his son's gray Volkswagen Golf car to drive Puška back to his home in Mucklagh. Pokuta stated that Puška's face had been scratched and was "almost blue", and that he was wet, shaking, and seemed injured. Puška claimed to have been hurt during a fight in Tullamore, but would not give any details.[63] Puška changed clothing at his Mucklagh home and asked another person in the household to burn the clothing he had been wearing during the day.[64] He was transported to Dublin several hours later. CCTV footage showed a car arriving at Puška's parents' apartment building in Crumlin, Dublin, at 12:58 am on 13 January. His parents exited the car, followed by Puška himself.[65]

Gardaí and paramedics were called to Puška's parents' apartment on the late morning of 13 January in relation to a reported stabbing incident. A paramedic testified in court that he encountered Puška in a bedroom of the apartment, shirtless and hunched over in pain. The paramedic observed three stab wounds to Puška's abdomen that were not fresh and not bleeding. He also observed scratches on Puška's face and arms.[66] Through his cousin, who acted as an interpreter, Puška told Gardaí that he had been stabbed in a fight in Blanchardstown the previous day.[67] CCTV footage showed paramedics carrying Puška out of the building at 11:56 am and placing him in an ambulance.[37] CCTV comparisons later revealed that between entering and leaving his parents' apartment, Puška had shaved off his facial hair in an apparent effort to alter his appearance.[43] He was taken to St James's Hospital, Dublin, arriving there at 12:13 pm.[36]

Investigation

Within two hours of Murphy's murder, Gardaí detained a 40-year-old man,[2][68] based partly on descriptions given by an eyewitness,[48][69] but released him the next day after eliminating him from their investigation.[70] The man spoke to the Irish Independent on 15 January, recounting his experience of being interrogated by Gardaí and describing the online threats he had received since his arrest.[71]

On 13 January, Gardaí investigating a double stabbing incident in Blanchardstown interviewed the alleged stabbing victim brought to St. James's Hospital earlier that day from an apartment in Crumlin.[67] Gardaí initially regarded him as a potential third victim in the Blanchardstown incident.[72] The man, later identified as Puška, claimed that a friend had driven him from Tullamore to Dublin the previous day. He claimed to have taken a taxi from Heuston Station to Blanchardstown, where he planned to meet a woman for a date, but that two men had assaulted him.[67] Stating that one man had knocked him to the ground and held him while the other stabbed him, he claimed that the scratches on his face, head, and arms had come from being dragged on the ground during the assault.[73] However, Gardaí believed that the scratches—which they believed were consistent with having crawled through thick briars[74]—were at odds with his claim to have been assaulted in Blanchardstown; they also noted inconsistencies in his accounts of his movements on 12 January.[39] A Garda superior officer determined that there were "a lot of pieces of a jigsaw puzzle that couldn’t be put together." Suspecting a connection to the Murphy murder investigation, he contacted colleagues in Tullamore.[39][74]

On the night of 13 January, Puška underwent surgery, which ended at about 10:45 pm.[75] Two Garda detectives from Tullamore interviewed him at St. James's Hospital the following day, January 14, with the assistance of an interpreter who translated via a speakerphone. The detectives informed Puška that he was a person of interest in relation to Ashling Murphy's murder.[76] Puška confessed to the murder, asking the interpreter to tell Gardaí "exactly what I tell you, that I did it, that I killed her but to tell him also that I did not do it intentionally, that I didn’t want to do it and that I’m very sorry I did it, that it happened."[39] He told detectives that he was confessing because he did not want anything bad to happen to his family.[76] One detective wrote a note recording that Puška had said: “I did it. I murdered. I am the murderer.” Puška, upset and crying, signed the note.[39] He later put his fingers to his lips, saying he had told Murphy to be quiet, and said, in English: "I tell her go, I won’t hurt you, when she pass, I cut her neck, she panic, I panic."[39] The admission that he had cut Murphy's neck disclosed details of her death that were not yet public knowledge.[57] Puška also admitted that the stab wounds to his abdomen had been self-inflicted.[39] He admitted to owning a mountain bike fitting the description of the bike found at the crime scene, but claimed it had been stolen from his home two weeks previously.[73]

Gardaí requested members of the public to come forward if they had noticed a black and green Falcon Storm mountain bike on the day of the killing,[77] or a man wearing a black tracksuit with a large white stripe or white writing on the bottoms.[78] They searched properties in County Offaly and Dublin,[79][80] and seized two cars.[81][82] On 18 January, the day of Murphy's funeral, Puška was discharged from St. James's Hospital at 10:31 am and immediately arrested. Gardaí drove him to Tullamore Garda Station, where they obtained fingerprints, DNA samples, and blood samples.[83][84][85] After spending the night in a cell at the station, Puška was charged with Murphy's murder on 19 January and identified publicly as 31-year-old Jozef Puška with an address in Mucklagh, near Tullamore. That evening, Puška appeared before a special sitting of Tullamore District Court. A large crowd heckled him outside the courthouse,[86] while members of Murphy's family appeared in court holding up framed pictures of her.[87] Puška was remanded in custody at Cloverhill Prison.[88][89]

As part of the investigation, Gardai reviewed around 25,000 hours of CCTV footage to establish the respective movements of Puška and Murphy on 12 and 13 January.[43]

Trial

On 25 April 2022, the Central Criminal Court set a date of 6 June 2023 for Puška's trial.[90] The trial was delayed, as the prosecution required additional time to respond to an expert report from the defence.[91] The trial began on 17 October 2023 before a jury of nine men and three women, with Puška pleading not guilty to Murphy's murder.[92][93] During the trial, the jury heard CCTV and geolocation evidence of Murphy's and Puška's movements on the day of the killing. It heard testimony from multiple eyewitnesses, and heard that Puška had confessed to the murder two days after Murphy's death.[33] In addition, it heard forensic evidence in relation to DNA and fingerprints.[94][95] The jury was told that Puška's DNA matched DNA taken from handlebars of the mountain bike recovered from the scene, while his fingerprints had been found on the seat of the bike.[76] In addition, Puška's DNA gave a 1-in-14,000 match with the male DNA found beneath Murphy's fingernails after she had attempted to fight off her killer.[83] The prosecution claimed that the evidence against Puška—including CCTV evidence, forensic evidence, eyewitness accounts, and his own confession—was "overwhelming."[96]

In his defence, Puška claimed that an unknown man wearing a surgical mask had stabbed him three times in the abdomen before murdering Murphy. He claimed that he had tried to assist Murphy with her injuries, but then left the scene because he was stressed and afraid. He claimed that he did not remember confessing to the killing.[97] The defence argued that Puška had confessed in hospital following surgery, while under the influence of oxycodone, which a medical expert testified could have had an impact on his admissions. However, pharmacological expert Professor Michael Ryan countered that claim, stating that he had "never heard" of anyone confessing to murder after a small amount of oxycodone.[98][69] Additionally, Puška had previously given multiple different accounts of the events of 12 January, and had already admitted lying to Gardaí on a number of occasions, including when he claimed to have been stabbed in Blanchardstown.[76][99][97]

On 9 November 2023, after a trial lasting over three weeks, the jury deliberated for just two hours before returning a unanimous verdict of guilty.[1][100] The judge in the case, Mr Justice Tony Hunt, said he was glad the jury did not waste any more time considering the "nonsense" Puška had offered in his defence.[101][57] The judge commented that there would be a "day of reckoning" for Puška and said: "We have evil in this room. No doubt about that."[57] Murphy's mother held up a photograph of her daughter in court during the judge's comments. Friends and family of Murphy applauded as the jury left the box.[57]

Speaking outside court after the verdict, Murphy's brother Cathal thanked the jury for their "patience and resilience throughout this incredibly difficult process." He said that his sister had been subjected to "incomprehensible violence" and stated: "The judicial process cannot bring our darling Ashling back, nor can it heal our wounds. But we are relieved that this verdict delivers justice. It is simply imperative that this vicious monster can never harm another woman again."[102]

Sentencing and victim impact statements

On 17 November, Puška was sentenced to mandatory life imprisonment.[5] In his comments, Mr Justice Tony Hunt criticised the sentencing restrictions in Irish courts. Noting that Puška would be eligible for parole in 12 years, Hunt stated his view that judges should be able to set minimum terms for life sentences, as they could in other jurisdictions.[103]

A female Garda officer read a victim impact statement from Murphy's mother Kathleen, saying: "As a parent, you want your child to go out into this world and live a full and meaningful life yet, being acutely aware of how fragile their safety is, wanting to protect them. I couldn't protect my darling Ashling, and now she is gone forever." She called Puška an "evil monster" and said "he should never see the light of day again."[104]

Amy Murphy read a victim impact statement recalling how she and her sister had played music at the family table. She said: "Music is not and will never be the same without Ashling. Our love for Irish music was intertwined with a special bond. We could read each other's mind when we played together." She continued: "Ashling's pink fiddle case now lies covered in dust. For me, this serves as the hardest and cruelest reminder we will never play together again and how fragile this life truly is." Speaking to Puška, she stated: "Ashling's last ten minutes on this earth must have felt like the longest ten minutes of her life." She said: "You stole :her life, took her voice and robbed us of our family of five."[104]

Murphy's partner Ryan Casey recalled how he had known Murphy since they met at a local disco at age 15. He described how they had planned to marry, build a home together, and start a family. Speaking to Puška, he said: "Because of you, I lost my Ashling. I have lost everything I have ever wanted in life. I will never get to marry my soulmate or see her smile again." He also said to Puška: "You smirked, you smiled, and showed zero remorse throughout this trial; that sums you up as the epitome of pure evil. You will never ever harm a woman again."[104]

Charges against perpetrator's family members

On 13 June 2023, Gardaí arrested three women and two men, all Slovakian nationals in their 30s.[105] They were identified as Puška's wife, Lucia Ištóková; two of his brothers, Ľubomír and Marek Puška; and their respective wives, Viera Gažiová and Jozefína Grundzová.[106] Ištóková and the two Puška brothers were charged with withholding information relating to the murder investigation; Gažiová and Grundzová were charged with impeding an arrest. All five individuals appeared before Tullamore District Court on 20 December 2023, where they were sent forward for trial at the Central Criminal Court.[107][108]

Reactions

People across Ireland expressed shock and sadness following Murphy's death.[15] The President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, paid tribute to her "short but brilliant and generous life."[109] The Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, condemned her "violent and horrific killing" and stated that "violence against women can not be tolerated in any circumstance."[110] The Minister for Justice, Helen McEntee, described the circumstances of her death as "every woman and family's worst nightmare".[111]

Communities across Ireland paid tribute to Murphy in the days after her death,[112] with up to 100 vigils held in locations including Tullamore, Dublin, Limerick, Cork, Galway, Derry, Tyrone and Armagh.[111][113][114][115] Vigils were also held internationally in Melbourne, Edinburgh, London, New York, Toronto and Vancouver.[116][117] On 19 January, one week after the killing, over 100 people carrying photographs and flowers attended a vigil at the site where she was killed.[118]

McEntee said new laws to make stalking a specific criminal offence would be published before Easter 2022.[119] On 20 April 2022, McEntee brought a memo to Cabinet on new legislation that would make stalking and non-fatal strangulation standalone offences, carrying a maximum prison sentence of 10 years.[120] These laws came into effect in October 2023.[121]

Hundreds of people attended masses to commemorate the first and second anniversaries of Murphy's death.[122][123] In January 2023, Murphy's family established the Ashling Murphy Memorial Fund to support the traditional Irish arts, culture and heritage for young people.[124] On the second anniversary of her death, Conor McGregor pledged to donate €50,000 to the fund.[125]

See also

References

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  2. 1 2 Reynolds, Paul (13 January 2022). "'No stone will be left unturned' in murder inquiry". RTÉ News and Current Affairs.
  3. ↑ "Ashling Murphy: Murder of young school teacher has 'united the nation in solidarity and revulsion', Irish leader says". Sky News. 14 January 2022. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
  4. ↑ "Ashling Murphy's boyfriend condemns 'lowest of the low' Jozef Puska as he is sentenced for murder". BreakingNews.ie. 17 November 2023. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  5. 1 2 Crisp, James (17 November 2023). "Murderer of Irish schoolteacher Ashling Murphy sentenced to life in prison". The Telegraph. Retrieved 18 November 2023.
  6. ↑ "Talented Teacher, Musician And Friend, Ashling Murphy Was A 'Shining Light'". 9 November 2023. Retrieved 17 December 2023.
  7. ↑ Clarke, Vivienne (13 January 2022). "Ashling Murphy remembered: 'She was a shining light, her smile lit up a room'". The Irish Times. Retrieved 14 January 2022.
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  17. ↑ Doherty, Oisin (7 February 2023). "Camogie college championship to be renamed in honour of Ashling Murphy". Irish Mirror. Retrieved 28 December 2023.
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  25. ↑ Healy, Paul (2 November 2023). "Ashling Murphy trial: Every update from court as Jozef Puska takes witness stand". Irish Mirror. Retrieved 6 January 2024.
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  30. ↑ "Who is Jozef Puska? From anonymous father-of-five to notorious killer". The Irish Times. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
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  122. ↑ "More than 400 people attend memorial Mass for Ashling Murphy". Westmeath Independent. 12 January 2023. Retrieved 13 January 2024.
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