Latest news with #Satchwell
Irish Examiner
04-07-2025
- Irish Examiner
Richard Satchwell to appeal against his conviction for the murder of his wife Tina
Richard Satchwell has lodged an appeal against his conviction for the murder of his wife Tina Satchwell, who he admitted to burying beneath a concrete floor in their East Cork home. The appeal was lodged on June 4, the day he was jailed for life for his wife's murder, it is understood. Satchwell, 58, pleaded not guilty to the murder of his wife on March 20, 2017 at their home on 3 Grattan St, Youghal. But following a four week trial in front of Justice Paul McDermott and the jury of seven women and five men, he was found guilty of her murder. Ms Satchwell's skeletal remains were found in a shallow grave under a concrete floor in the sitting room of her home during an invasive search of the property in October 2023. Missing persons report Her husband first told gardaí that his wife was missing on March 24, 2017. He said that on the morning of March 20, 2017, Mrs Satchwell had asked him to go to Dungarvan to buy parrot food [for their parrot Valentine] and for some other items in Aldi. But when he got back, he said that his wife was gone. Gardaí strongly suspected something criminal had happened to Mrs Satchwell. Up to 10 gardaí searched the Satchwell's house on June 7, 2017 for 12 hours. Gardaí discovered a filthy, unkempt home, with dog faeces on the floor and a bird cage that had not been cleaned in a long time. Luminol, a chemical that detects the presence of blood, was used by Dr Edward Connolly, forensic scientist with Forensic Science Ireland, throughout the 'complete' house, including the stairwells. No traces of blood were found. But photos taken in the home on that search prompted a second, invasive search at the home in October 2023. 'Home improvements' and a new red brick wall were noted under the stairwell in the sitting room and that area was excavated. Below this concrete, a skeletal hand emerging from sandy soil was the first sighting of Mrs Satchwell, who had vanished more than six years earlier. Her body was found in a supine position with loose skeletal parts in a grave beneath that wall. Mr Satchwell was arrested for his wife's murder that day, October 12, 2023. Sudden change in Satchwell's story After more than six years saying that his wife had left him, he suddenly changed his narrative. Now, he told gardaí that he had been making Mrs Satchwell breakfast on the morning of March 20, 2017, when he heard a scraping noise by the staircase. He followed the noise and claimed he found his wife scraping plasterboard he had recently erected by the staircase with a chisel. He claimed he said 'Tina, what are you doing?' And she then 'flew at him with a chisel,' he said. He fell to the ground and she jumped on top of him, trying to stab him in the head with the chisel, he claimed. He said he held the belt of her dressing gown to her neck to protect himself and 'in a flash' she 'went limp' and fell into his arms dead. He later buried her under the stairs in the sitting room and concreted over her shallow grave.
Sunday World
11-06-2025
- Sunday World
Fears Satchwell murder home will become ‘macabre' tourist spot
Property jointly registered in killer and victim's names Locals in Youghal, Co Cork fear no 3 Grattan Street, the house where Richard Satchwell kept his wife's body buried beneath the stairs for six and a half years, will become a macabre tourist destination for true crime 'fans.' Property records obtained by the Sunday World show Richard Satchwell and murdered Tina were jointly registered as 'full owners' of the property on July 21st, 2016. There have been no changes of ownership recorded on the deeds since. This means despite his status as a convicted killer Satchwell will retain his 50 percent interest in the property. Richard Satchwell with his wife Tina However, under Irish law a person is not entitled to benefit financially from a crime, meaning the remaining 50 per cent will go to Tina's estate. In recent weeks, a make-shift memorial with a plaque saying ' Not a Day goes by that you are not missed' could be seen on the front window of the property. One local man told the Sunday World: 'People in the town would be happy if someone would come in and tear it down. 'But the way the Irish courts work, it will probably end up derelict there for years before it can be sold. 'And you can imagine the weirdos that will be down here gawking at it and trying to get inside it. 'I'm not saying we don't want tourists but there's some kind you're better off without.' New photos of the house where Tina Satchwell's body was found A neighbour who spoke with the Sunday World as the jury were still out in Satchwell's trial, said although the case was shocking, he had never encountered Richard Satchwell's darker side. 'He didn't say much and seemed a bit withdrawn,' he said. 'We only moved in after his wife disappeared and you'd see him walking past the house on the street. Tina Satchwell's home where her remains were found 'He always had his head down … like a man who knew everyone in the town thought he'd killed his wife. 'But until they found the body, nobody knew that for sure.' A man working in a yard at the rear of Grattan Street said his daughter's father-in-law worked in the same company as Satchwell. 'After the wife disappeared, he put up a front. Richard Satchwell murdered his wife 'He'd try and sit with other drivers for a coffee as if nothing was wrong. 'But no-one trusted him.' The man also said he regarded Satchwell's decision to conceal his wife under the stairs as an act of pure stupidity. 'He had a truck … he drives all over the country and he had the sea on his doorstep,' he said. 'He'd six-and-half years to put the poor woman somewhere and if he had he would never have been caught. 'He could be living it up in South America now instead of being in a prison cell. 'What kind of a man lives in a house for that length of time with a dead body?' No 3 Grattan Street News in 90 Seconds - Tuesday June 10
Irish Examiner
09-06-2025
- Irish Examiner
Review of Tina Satchwell case to include if cadaver dog should have been used in 2017 search — Harris
The Garda Commissioner has said suggestions gardaí should have used a cadaver dog — capable of detecting human remains — at the home of Tina Satchwell when she went missing in 2017 will form part of a review he had ordered. Drew Harris pointed out that, at the time, the suspicion was that harm had been caused to Ms Satchwell, not that her body was buried in the house, located on Grattan Street, Youghal. Richard Satchwell, 58, was given a life sentence late last month for the murder of his 45-year-old wife in 2017. Her remains were found in October 2023 in a deep grave under the stairs, more than six years after her husband reported her missing. Over the weekend, justice minister Jim O'Callaghan indicated a cadaver dog should probably have been used in the initial search in 2017. Speaking on RTÉ's This Week, he said there was only one trained dog on the island of Ireland, used by the PSNI. Mr O'Callaghan said "it obviously would be preferable if we had a cadaver dog' but said it was up to the commissioner how money should be spent. Reacting to those remarks, Mr Harris said: 'We want to review all those decisions back in 2017 but what I know from the reporting that I've seen is that the suspicion was that harm had been caused to Tina Satchwell but there was no suspicion that her body was actually there.' He also said cadaver dogs were a 'very specialist subset' of police dogs. 'I have to say they are not often required operationally, it's not a usual thing that we need a cadaver dog,' he said. Mr Harris announced last Friday he had ordered a review into the initial investigation into Ms Satchwell's killing, as well as a review into the investigation into the disappearance of Kerry farmer Michael Gaine, whose remains were found in a slurry pit eight weeks after he vanished. Mr O'Callaghan requested reports into the cases.
Belfast Telegraph
08-06-2025
- Belfast Telegraph
Justice Minister voices concern over time taken to find Tina Satchwell's body
Jim O'Callaghan also said it would be preferable if An Garda Siochana had its own cadaver dog to help find human remains. He said there is currently just one cadaver dog on the island of Ireland which belongs to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). It was announced last week that both the investigation into the murder of Mrs Satchwell, and of Co Kerry farmer Michael Gaine, will be reviewed. A report is to be compiled and given to Mr O'Callaghan on Mrs Satchwell's disappearance while the case of Mr Gaine is undergoing a peer review. Speaking on RTE Radio One's This Week programme, Mr O'Callaghan said he had his quarterly meeting with Garda Commissioner Drew Harris last week and brought up the murder of Mrs Satchwell. 'I think from the outset it has to be said that gardai deserve to be commended for getting justice in this case,' he said. 'The person responsible for her murder, Richard Satchwell, is now serving a life sentence. 'However I did raise with the commissioner concern about the fact it had taken a considerable period of time to find her body and he said he is going to prepare a report on that.' It took six years before Mrs Satchwell's body was found. Mr O'Callaghan pointed out there are 'very devious people out there who go to very great lengths to hide their crimes'. 'That was the case with Richard Satchwell, and it is also the case with the person responsible for the murder of Mike Gaine who hasn't yet been apprehended,' he said. Asked whether a cadaver dog should have been brought into the Satchwell home in 2017 during the investigation, Mr O'Callaghan said 'probably, it should have happened'. He said he also spoke to Mr Harris about the effectiveness of cadaver dogs. 'They're a very specialised dog in terms of trying to train them, there is one on the island of Ireland, the PSNI has one,' he said. 'That dog is sought by many police forces in Britain as well. We got the use of the dog here and he was of much assistance. 'It obviously would be preferable if we had a cadaver dog. They have a very limited work life, cadaver dogs, they're only operational for a period of about three years, they have to go through a very difficult training process. 'It would be preferable if the cadaver dog available on the island had been used earlier.'
Irish Daily Mirror
08-06-2025
- Politics
- Irish Daily Mirror
Justice Minister voices concern over time taken to find Tina Satchwell's body
The Minister for Justice has raised concern with the Garda Commissioner over how long it took to find the body of murder victim Tina Satchwell. Jim O'Callaghan also said it would be preferable if An Garda Siochana had its own cadaver dog to help find human remains. He said there is currently just one cadaver dog on the island of Ireland which belongs to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI). It was announced last week that both the investigation into the murder of Mrs Satchwell, and of Co Kerry farmer Michael Gaine, will be reviewed. A report is to be compiled and given to Mr O'Callaghan on Mrs Satchwell's disappearance while the case of Mr Gaine is undergoing a peer review. Speaking on RTE Radio One's This Week programme, Mr O'Callaghan said he had his quarterly meeting with Garda Commissioner Drew Harris last week and brought up the murder of Mrs Satchwell. "I think from the outset it has to be said that gardai deserve to be commended for getting justice in this case," he said. "The person responsible for her murder, Richard Satchwell, is now serving a life sentence. "However I did raise with the commissioner concern about the fact it had taken a considerable period of time to find her body and he said he is going to prepare a report on that." It took six years before Mrs Satchwell's body was found. Mr O'Callaghan pointed out there are "very devious people out there who go to very great lengths to hide their crimes". "That was the case with Richard Satchwell, and it is also the case with the person responsible for the murder of Mike Gaine who hasn't yet been apprehended," he said. Asked whether a cadaver dog should have been brought into the Satchwell home in 2017 during the investigation, Mr O'Callaghan said "probably, it should have happened". He said he also spoke to Mr Harris about the effectiveness of cadaver dogs. "They're a very specialised dog in terms of trying to train them, there is one on the island of Ireland, the PSNI has one," he said. "That dog is sought by many police forces in Britain as well. We got the use of the dog here and he was of much assistance. "It obviously would be preferable if we had a cadaver dog. They have a very limited work life, cadaver dogs, they're only operational for a period of about three years, they have to go through a very difficult training process. "It would be preferable if the cadaver dog available on the island had been used earlier." Get the latest crime and court stories straight to your phone on our new WhatsApp service. Sign up here
