Victim Impact: ‘Kind, pleasant, hardworking and intelligent, loving man’

Vera McGrath has been sentenced to 18 months for helping her husband’s killer dispose of his body in Co Westmeath almost thirty years ago.

A victim impact statement on behalf of Bernard Brian McGrath’s three sons – Brian, Andrew and – was read out in court.

The statement said: “The loss of our father has had a profound effect on us, learning of the barbaric way his life was taken away from us has left us numb with shock.

“Not being able to visit or tend a Christian burial site, and with so many unanswered questions has left us with the inability to grieve or mourn in the normal natural way the loss of our father.

“Not having a father figure has left us with no direction in life, as children and young men this was taken away from us.

“Our father was a kind, pleasant, hardworking and intelligent, loving man.

“He is greatly missed by his children and grandchildren who were denied knowing the wisdom that comes from a loving grandfather.

“The passing of time has not dimmed the memory of or longing of a much loved father”.

An additional impact statement on behalf of Edward McGrath was also read out in court:

The statement said: “I remember my father Brian McGrath as a loving, protective, kind man. He provided me with a stable home, education and guidance as a young boy.

“This life I knew was cruelly taken away from me in the most painful way possible. As a result of this heinous crime I had to go through life without my father being able to attend special events such as my Confirmation, my Wedding or birth of his grandchildren.

“I was not provided with the opportunity of attending secondary school or college. There was no pity or remorse shown towards my dad by the people responsible for his death.

“He lay in an unmarked grave for a decade. We were not allowed to speak his name at home or put a picture of him on the mantle-piece.

“It has taken a very long time for justice to be served to the people responsible.

“The initial stages of grief and sadness that most people experience when someone they love is taken from them is extremely hard to bear; when that period is extended to 27 years, it is truly unbearable as you have no closure.

“The memory of my loving father will never be erased. His spirit continues to shine bright in my family home today.”