A 27-year-old Dublin man who was previously sentenced to five years for manslaughter has been given a mandatory life sentence for the murder of a Chinese student.
Derek Wade of Church Avenue, Rialto, has 25 previous convictions including a seven-year sentence for manslaughter in 1999 when he was just 17. The majority of his convictions were for road traffic offences.
He was found guilty by a jury at the Central Criminal Court last week of stabbing Zhi Song (23) with a carving knife after breaking into the house was Mr Song living in at Reuben Avenue, South Circular Road, in the early hours of June 29th 2005.
Wade also received a five-year sentence for attempting to rob Xiau Wen Zhou of her purse on the same occasion.
Mr Michael O'Higgins SC, defending, said that Wade offered his sincere apologies to the parents of Zhi Song who had attended the trial, for the pain they had suffered.
He said that Wade required ongoing treatment for substantial substance abuse and asked that he be moved to a wing of the prison where he could get the support he required.
He asked for leave to appeal the conviction which Justice White refused.
Speaking to journalists outside the court through an interpreter, Mr Song's parents spoke of their grief at losing their only son.
They said the law in Ireland was very different to the law at home.
In China, Wade would have received the death sentence for his crime while in Ireland he received life in prison.
"I think he was punished by the law but we can never have our son back again."
They said they hated the man who murdered their son. Ji Bong Song, the dead man's father said: "We hope he will be kept in prison for life never to hurt other innocent people."
Mr Song was killed by Wade in the upstairs of the house he shared with his girlfriend Xiau Wen Zhou, also known as Tracy.
Wade had entered the house through a window and had armed himself with a meat cleaver and carving knife from the kitchen.
He entered Ms Zhou's room at around 5 am and unintentionally woke her. In evidence, Ms Zhou said Wade told her he would not hurt her and only wanted her purse.
A noise outside the room made Wade run out leaving Ms Zhou sitting on the bed. She heard a grunt "like someone pushing or lifting something with full force."
Seconds later Mr Song staggered into her room bleeding from an open stab wound. He collapsed on the floor beside her bed with the knife protruding from a stab wound which pierced his heart and went into his lung.
Early the next evening Wade went to see his ex-girlfriend and mother of his child.
He showed her that day's Evening Heraldnewspaper which contained a description and told her he was going to England to get away. He told her "I keep seeing his face."
A couple of days later he was asked to take part in an identity parade by gardai. Despite having dyed his hair and eyebrows, Ms Zhou identified him.