Murdered publican's funeral held

The funeral has taken place of Co Offaly publican Matt Farrell who was killed last week by intruders who broke into his premises.

Nearly 1,000 mourners turned out at the Church of Mary, the Mother of God in Daingean for the funeral mass.

Mr Farrell (64) died of a blow to the head when raiders targeted his Gaelic Bar in the town on Wednesday last week.

The mourners were led by his wife Mary and their daughter Natalie and by his four children from his first marriage, Matthew, David, Lorraine and Michelle. His first wife Loretta pre-deceased him.

Matthew, who found his father's body last Wednesday, said the family had received so many text and phone-calls from people wishing to express their condolences and offering to help in any way possible.

"This has helped us get through this sad and tragic time. What has happened is something you look at on the news every day, but never think it could happen in your own family and community," he said.

He commended the Gardai for their efforts in finding his father's killers. "It is not an easy time for them either. They have dealt with our family in a very caring and sympathetic way. They have given so much time and resources working on this case and they are determined not to stop until they find the people responsible for this crime."

He described his father as a "loving and kind father with a heart of gold" and a "good and decent family man dearly loved by all".

He loved to tell stories about his time in school and also loved to tell a joke "telling at times the same ones over and over again. However, he had a great knack for telling them and each time they sounded as funny as the first time he told them".

"He loved people being in good humour and he often said of EastEnders and Coronation Street that there is nothing but fighting and arguing in them and that he'd rather have Mr Bean or Brendan Grace any day."

He loved the bands that were in the pub on a Sunday night and would clap and cheer after every song.

In his homily Fr Paddy O'Byrne said the news of Mr Farrell's death had been a source of "shock, disappointment and sorrow" for local people.

"People found it hard to accept it. We hear about these things. We read about them in other places, but we always feel they would never appear at our own doorstep. "Unfortunately, it did land at our own doorstep bringing great shock and sadness to the whole community and particularly the Farrell family, the fact that a local man had been so brutally done to death."