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AARON BRADY HAS been sentenced to life in prison for the capital murder of Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe.
Under the Criminal Justice Act 1990 the judge was required to state that Brady must serve a minimum term of imprisonment of 40 years.
Mr Justice White also sentenced Brady to 14 years for robbery, a sentence that will run concurrently with the life sentence.
Brady was found guilty by an 11 to one majority jury verdict on 11 August this year following trial.
He was sentenced today in the Central Criminal Court. Special arrangements were made to allow gardaí at Dundalk Garda Station and others to watch the proceedings remotely.
Adrian Donohoe was on active duty when he was killed on 25 January 2013 at Lordship Credit Union, Bellurgan, Co Louth.
Brady was last month convicted of involvement in the robbery of €7,000 at the Credit Union on this date.
Speaking at a sentence hearing for her husband’s murderer, Caroline Donohoe said no words can express the impact on her life, the lives of her children and their family, colleagues and friends who all loved Adrian.
“We had a loving, happy family, but in just 58 senseless seconds everything changed forever,” she told the Central Criminal Court today.
She visited the scene less than an hour after the shooting and identified her husband’s body.
“I will never recover fully from what I had to see,” she said, adding: “My heart breaks every time I pass there and sometimes I can’t get the images out of my mind for hours. Nothing and nobody will ever replace Adrian in our home.”
Detective Garda Donohoe’s parents Hugh and Peggy, in a written statement read by their son Alan, said the murder was “a waste of a good man for such an evil and pointless act”.
They added: “We visit his grave every week, which is some comfort, but it’s no place for him. He should be here with us living his life.”
Garda response
In a statement released after the sentencing, An Garda Síochána said that today “has been another traumatic step” for Adrian Donohoe’s family, friends and Garda colleagues.
“Aaron Brady was just one member of a criminal gang on that day. This criminal investigation remains live as the other members of that gang remain to be brought before the courts; the commitment and tenacity of the investigation team based at Dundalk Garda Station to bring all suspects to justice remains steadfast.”
Garda Commissioner Drew Harris said: “My thoughts and those of the Garda Organisation are once again today with Adrian Donohoe’s family.
“We in An Garda Síochána will continue to support the family, and the friends and colleagues of Adrian. An Garda Síochána’s resolve to bring all the participants in this crime to justice remains firm and the investigation team at Dundalk will continue to be supported by the resources of the wider organisation.”
An Garda Síochána issued an appeal to any person with information about the murder of Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe to come forward to detectives with that information. The investigation team can be contacted at Dundalk Garda Station on 042 9388400, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station.
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That’s a great blast from the past. I remember being mesmerized as a child by his getup. RIP
Dublin legend
@mac: also rose of tralee legend
A modern day Molly Malone. Even as a kid, i was always captivated watching him on Grafton Street.
@Connor Saváge: yep I was always impressed with him when on Grafton street as a kid. Then I used to serve him in a restaurant close to his home and he wasn’t very pleasant. Moral. Never meet your dicemen!
@Verandah: I guess it would be hard to keep the good side out if you were dying of aids. RIP The Diceman.
Nice article. Rest in Piece.
@Thomas Quinn: or peace rather.
A memorial statue of Thom should be erected somewhere on Grafton Street. He should be suitably remembered.
@Micheal S. O’ Ceilleachair: absolutely. He was the first of his kind
I remember at the start of the 90s I got a job bartending in fagans in drumcondra.i remember serving Thom on numerous occasions but never knew he was the dice man or who the dice man even was.i was 18 at the time.thom would usually come in with his two pals Donna and Joe.ive seen both doing ads and walk in parts on fair city.he would tell some great stories in his auld Scottish accent and have us all sore from laughing by the end of the night.very nice chap indeed.
@Tony Hanratty: he must have loosened up with a few drinks because I had the opposite experience of him when working in Drumcondra. That said, it was about ’94 so he could well have been very ill at that point.
RIP Thom, you brought colour to dreary 80s Dublin. You’re not forgotten.
Pat Ingolsby
There is a memorial plaque inset into the footpath outside the AIB bank in Tralee where the Diceman used to perform. He is not forgotten here.
RIP Thom
On that Late Late Show he said the nearest anyone came to making him laugh was an oul wan taking out her false teeth in front of his face. RIP Thom.
Brilliant article, very informative . Well done to the writers and thanks to the Diceman for the memories x x
Anyone know the name of your man that stood on Grafton street doing the poems?
@Patrick Agnew: Pat Ingoldsby maybe.
@Johnathan Smith: thanks guys but not him. The man I’m thinking of was a street performer who stood in grafton street with all his poems and placards tied to lamp posts. He was able to quote almost any poem the passers by asked him for. I remember he was on the late late show once. He died tragically maybe 20 years ago.
@Patrick Agnew: One of his poems was called Jesus On Thomas Street and ended “I took him home for tea and bandages”. Tom, I think. I went to Grogan’s with him once or twice, didn’t know he’d died. RIP.
@Patrick Agnew: He had a top coat and shined brogues. About mid thirties. Great dignity. Wrote a fine book about living/coping with aids. Lived I think in a flat in Ballymun. Book had word MOON in the title. Hung himself in church grounds. Very tragic, at a time there was little help for people with aids. Like the Diceman left a lasting impression. Maybe his first name was Pat.
@Johnathan Smith: No .Different Pat who was on RTE kids shows. He hung out in Westmoreland street. Great charecter too
@David Glynn: that’s him all right Dave but I’m not sure that’s his name. I’d love to see a video of him in action
@Patrick Agnew: I found him thanks for the help guys. Here’s the link:
@Patrick Agnew: Thanks for the link, well written and great photos.
@Eddie O’Neill: Pat Tierney was his name-o
I absolutely loved if I was brought into town as a kid and spotted him on Grafton St. Was fascinated by him
That brings back lovely memories
Thom was also convinced that he was conceived in Wicklow so felt he was utterly Irish -as well as Scot. A very witty guy and sorely missed!
Once went to a party in the mid 80′s and spent a few hours in his company ,a very nice man and a great performer.
He also worn the Mona Lisa costume outside a video club that used to be near the Walkinstown roundabout and it was funny looking at the cars slow down to look at him and him giving winks to the kids in the car
Nice article
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