Deaths of slain mother and children an ‘unspeakable loss', funeral hears
Crowds gathered in the Co Clare village of Barefield on Saturday to pay their respects to Vanessa Whyte, 45, and her children, James Rutledge, 14, and Sara Rutledge, 13.
The trio were shot dead at their home in Maguiresbridge in July.
Ian Rutledge, 43, died in hospital following the shooting. It is understood the agricultural contractor is the only suspect in the shooting of his family.
As requested by the family, many mourners wore bright colours and GAA jerseys, lining the main street to watch the three hearses pass.
Among those attending the service at the Church of the Immaculate Conception were a representative for Taoiseach Micheál Martin and GAA president Jarlath Burns.
Delivering the eulogy, Ms Whyte's sister Regina said the family had been robbed of their loved ones.
'Vanessa, James and Sara were taken from this world in a cruel and vicious manner – there are no words available to express how this has impacted our family and their friends,' she said.
'We as a family have been robbed of both a relationship with our sister and a chance to see James and Sara grow up, and they have been robbed of the remainder of their lives.
'It has taken us 11 days to be in a position to have Vanessa, James and Sara back to Clare.
'This was supposed to be a joyous occasion where Vanessa would see her new nephew, and Sara and James would meet their baby cousin for the first time. Instead we are in the position of choosing coffins, final burial places and funeral hymns.
'For us as a family, the only comfort we have is that Vanessa, James and Sara are together and finally safe.
'Vanessa will have her children at either side of her forever, as they were when they were alive.'
She described her sister as 'witty, bright, kind and determined', and said James and Sara were the 'focus of her world'.
She recalled James's love of the GAA, playing both hurling and football, and also cricket, adding he had been acknowledged as the 'kind, bright, determined teenager we as a family know so well'.
'James's smile was infectious, and his loyalty was strong,' she said.
Sara was remembered as having a deep love for animals, and aspiring to follow in her mother's footsteps to become a vet, as well as loving sport.
'She was an excellent hurler, a footballer and skilled at netball. She was a team player, a quiet leader, and like every sister, never let James away with anything,' she said.
'Amazing Grace' and 'Somewhere Over The Rainbow' were among the songs played during the service.
Bishop Ger Nash, Bishop of Ferns and a family friend, described heartbreak over the 'tragic and unspeakable loss of three lives with so much to give to the world'.
'The tragic events of last week, and the ripping away of three people from their family and friends leave us searching for answers and coming back again and again to the only answer that is completely true: 'We don't know',' he said.
Crowds also turned out for Ms Whyte, James and Sara for a service of removal in Maguiresbridge on Wednesday.
Ms Whyte, James and Sara are to be buried together in Templemaley Cemetery.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
26 minutes ago
- The Sun
I was on FaceTime call with my best friend when she was killed in a horror car crash – her screams will haunt me forever
A YOUNG woman who was on FaceTime with her best pal when she was killed in a car crash says she'll be haunted by the memory forever. Ebony Neville heard tragic work colleague Stephanie Nye-Diroyan suddenly scream as the video call cut out. 9 9 9 The 21-year-old then began frantically trying to call her friend back before getting into her own car and driving along the same route, eventually coming across the crash site. Stephanie, 21, was a passenger in a BMW being driven by another work colleague, Ivan Zaliac, 24, when they ploughed into a lorry at nearly 100mph on Mollison Avenue, in Enfield North London. Ebony told The Sun: "Seconds before the phone cut out you could hear the engine revving and Stephanie's scream - then it froze on her face." She added: 'I tried to ring her back - I don't know what I was thinking had happened. 'I then got in my car and I didn't know where to go, I knew that they were in Brimsdown, in that local area, but I had no idea where.' Zaliac - who walked free from court last month after being deemed unfit to stand trial - had been giving Stephanie a lift on October 23 2022 after they finished work at nearby second hand car dealership Big Motoring World. Ebony was ill that day and Stephanie had agreed to stop off to see her on her way home when she died. The crash happened at 7.54pm. 'It was literally a quick call,' explained Ebony. 'She worked that day - it was a Sunday - and I wasn't in. 'It was a quick catch up, really. A catch up with a friend, that's all. She was such a good friend, she'd been non-stop checking in throughout the day - but couldn't ring me until she finished work. 'We were on the phone and then it froze on Stephanie's face, and the call cut out.' Three pedestrians injured by falling rubble as van crashes through multi-storey car park wall in UK city centre She added: 'I then rang her personal phone. I also rang Ivan's phone, both were disconnected and were being put through to voicemail.' Ebony said she waited 20 minutes and was 'still ringing during this time… just to try and find out what had happened'. She rang the police and found out there'd been a 'bad crash' in Brimsdown so 'drove around'. 'It wasn't too far from my house, it was about an 11-minute drive,' Ebony said. 'The road was blocked off. I hadn't been told who was involved in the crash or what had happened. 'I wasn't allowed to know any information.' She was then directed to The Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel in the East End, where Stephanie had been taken. Holding back tears, Ebony said: 'I did everything I could that day and I wouldn't change anything. I went to the hospital… I wasn't allowed to know anything without Stephanie's mother knowing first.' 9 9 A screen shot she captured of Stephanie during the call, a few minutes before the crash, was shown in court. Ebony took to the stand to give evidence. She said: 'I was quite upset and ran out of the room immediately afterwards, and put myself together before returning.' Zailac suffers from amnesia and doesn't remember the details of what happened after suffering a brain injury in the collision and subsequent psychiatric issues. He had been ruled unfit to stand trial so the jury had to formally decide whether he did the act alleged, namely causing Stephanie's death by dangerous driving. The jury then found he did carry out the act. Judge Sarah Munro, KC, said Zailac will be supervised by a nominated social worker and the Hillingdon mental health team for two years. 'This is the only way your mental health can be restored in order for a decision to be made as to whether there are further legal consequences for you to face,' the judge said. Prosecutor Frederick Hookway told the court that the Crown intends to put Zailac on trial if he recovers. 'The objective of this order is for the improvement of the defendant's mental health not only for his own sake but for the future of these proceedings,' he said. 'The crown do intend to reinstitute these proceedings when and if appropriate.' Stephanie's mum Nicholle Diroyan sobbed as she read her victim impact statement at the Old Bailey on July 7. She said: 'The pain of losing her is immeasurable and every day without her feels incomplete.' Ebony, who now lives in Manchester, has launched a petition to try and ensure Stephanie's family get justice. 'There's been three years of constant delays and adjournments - and now we're told it'll be 2027 before we know if Ivan can even stand trial. 'It's the waiting. We're left in the dark.'. 'I feel so sorry for Stephanie's mum Nicholle - who's always at the court but then left frustrated each time.' Ebony added: 'We were told the jury returned a verdict in a record time. Quickest for death by dangerous driving for 27 years. 'Despite this clear outcome, family and friends are waiting for justice.' Referring to the two-year order, she said: 'It's a deterrent of the law, rather than an enforcement.' She added: 'That grievance, when everything is brought back up. I'm quite shaky on this call, it's traumatic to relive the tragic crash and death of Stephanie.' Ebony went on to say: 'Stephanie was the most lovely, genuine, outgoing person. She was there for her friends, she was there for her family. 'If anyone needed her, she'd message, she'd ring, she'd be there for you. To see her face in the newspaper in such a tragic way, and yet we're still yet to receive any justice, is so heartbreaking.' Stephanie had hired Ebony several months before, and was her manager before being promoted to the finance department shortly prior to her death. 'We became friends so quickly,' she said. 'The week before she died we were in Manchester and Nottingham, just enjoying ourselves. 'I was always going round to hers and picking her up or going for lunch break. 'Sometimes we'd get a takeaway into work and would be sitting there with 10 different Greggs items. She was amazing.' Ebony added: 'We believe she's looking down on us so proud of us all.' Do you know more? Email 9 9
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Boy, 17, suspected of killing paddleboarder is pictured after murder that's filled sleepy town with terror
A teenage boy arrested over the death of a paddleboarder in a sleepy Maine town has been pictured for the first time after pleading not guilty to murder. Deven Young, 17, was taken into custody on Wednesday night and later charged with the murder of Sunshine Stewart, 48, who was beaten and strangled to death in Union, Maine, on July 3, hours after setting off alone to paddleboard on Crawford Pond. Young appeared in a Knox County courtroom on Friday morning via Zoom, where he denied responsibility for Stewart's death. He spoke only to acknowledge that he understood the charges against him and that he'd conferred with his court-appointed attorney. Judge Eric Walker ordered Young to remain in custody on a charge that he caused Stewart's death either intentionally, knowingly, or with depraved indifference, the Midcoast Villager reported. Police affidavits and additional information regarding the evidence against Young will remain under seal until a status conference is held on August 22, Walker ruled. The state has requested Young's case be moved to adult court, but the motion has not yet been ruled on. For now, Young remains in custody at the Long Creek Youth Development Center in South Portland. Young is from Frankfort, Maine, but regularly spends summer vacations with his family on Crawford Pond, a source previously told the Daily Mail. His Facebook page states that he had attended Hampden Academy but left in 2023. He will turn 18 in September. Young's profile picture shows him posing with a shotgun in a chair, staring slack-jawed at the camera, with a cartoon American flag superimposed at his feet. His last post on the platform, dated July 12, included an image of a boat anchored on a lake at sunset. It's not clear where the image was taken. Asked by a friend in a comment beneath the post how he was, Young responded: 'I'm doing good how are you doing.' At the time the message was posted, state police were frantically scouring Union to find Stewart's killer. Young was arrested in the town on Wednesday evening without incident. His parents and grandparents have not responded to requests for comment. Any connections the teen had to Stewart are not yet known. News of her murder left residents of the small, tight-knit community of Union terrified. Among them was Meredith Smith, a childhood friend of Stewart's, who the Daily Mail she was stunned by the news of Young's arrest. 'Part of me is relieved that someone has been arrested, but the other part says this is far from over because I feel like there's still so much more to this story that we don't know,' said Smith. 'Sunshine was strong and feisty; she would've put up a would've given this person hell.' The Maine Attorney General's office confirmed to the Daily Mail that Young is the only suspect in Stewart's death. Stewart was last seen leaving her camper to go paddleboarding on Crawford Pond at around 6pm on July 2. When she had still not returned by the early hours of July 3, someone raised the alarm. Before dawn broke, a search and rescue drone spotted Stewart's paddleboard drifting alone. Her body was later discovered along the southeast shore of 100 Acre Island, a nature preserve in the middle of the pond. Police have not confirmed any details of how Stewart's body was found, or in what condition, sharing only that the circumstances were 'unusual.' An autopsy determined that Stewart's death was a homicide, but law enforcement shared few updates over the following two weeks. Smith told the Daily Mail on Monday that she was struggling to understand why anyone would harm her dear friend. 'Everyone who knew her loved her,' she said. 'Who would do something like this to her? She didn't have any enemies… there's nothing she could've done to make anybody mad enough to harm her. 'We're all on edge, it's just so scary… if it can happen to her, it can happen to anyone.' Local police urged residents of Union to remain calm but be 'aware of their surroundings'. On Wednesday, it was revealed that Maine State Police were collecting DNA samples from men who were near Crawford Pond on the night Stewart vanished, as first reported by the Midcoast Villager. It's unclear whether the arrest of the teen came as a result of DNA. Smith told the Daily Mail she feared what the DNA search may indicate about Stewart's final moments of life. 'I feel like it's insinuating something that they're only taking DNA from men and not women,' she said. 'You wonder, could this have been done by someone that was obsessed with her? Or maybe it was completely random and she was in the wrong place at the wrong time.' 'She was a strong person and would have given them a tough fight because she was feisty.' With police offering little in the way of updates until Thursday, the radio silence caused rumors, conspiracies, and fear to prosper in the small town of Union. News of Stewart's death renewed fears that a serial killer could be preying on victims across New England undetected, following a string of unexplained deaths. At least 13 bodies have been discovered throughout Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts and Maine since March 2025, with the majority of them found in wooded or secluded areas and some submerged in water. Most of the deaths are unexplained, with many of the victims showing no visible signs of trauma. Law enforcement in multiple states has repeatedly denied any confirmed link between the cases and urged the public to refrain from jumping to conclusions and peddling baseless speculation. Various experts have also claimed there are no consistent patterns between the crimes, with victim profiles, locations of the deaths, and suspected causes too varying to be the work of one person. Still, some residents in Union feared the worst. 'People are definitely having that conversation, but for me it feels a little farfetched,' Smith said on Monday. 'When you look at where Sunny was killed, it's secluded and unless you're really familiar with the area, you're unlikely to know how to get to Crawford Pond.' Union is a sleepy hamlet where most residents know each other - the kind of place where people rarely lock their doors. But since Stewart's murder, Smith said she keeps her door firmly bolted and also often catches herself glancing over her shoulder or eyeing unfamiliar faces with suspicion. In the meantime, Smith continues to grieve the loss of her friend, who was a carpenter, marine biologist, lobsterman, bartender, and boat captain. Smith said: 'She was a force of nature who was strong-willed, independent, outgoing, and adventurous. She had a smile and a laugh that was so contagious. 'Sunny was a free-bird spirit who loved what she did and was just living day-to-day enjoying her life… It's devastating.' Investigators are asking anyone who saw Stewart paddling on the evening of July 2 to reach out to the Maine State Police at 207-624-7076.
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Family man is named as murder victim found dead on riverside bench - as police continue to hunt killer
A man found dead on a riverside bench has been named by police as officers continue their hunt for the killer. The body of Robert Brown, 57, was discovered on the canal footpath near the River Nene, Northampton on Friday morning. Police offered their condolences to his family who are currently being assisted by specialist officers. Northamptonshire Police confirmed Mr Brown had been found 'fatally injured' on the bench, adding that he had suffered a wound to his arm. The exact cause of death has yet to be determined. A cordon remains in place around the scene, with the footpath closed off and the river closed to boats as searches take place. The River Nene is shut off to pedestrians and river traffic between London Road bridge and Nunn Mills Road bridge and will likely remain closed until Tuesday evening while the search takes place. Police are currently appealing for witnesses or CCTV footage of the nearby area, specifically from those living in apartments that overlook the river. On Sunday morning, a massive manhunt was launched into the incident, with house-to-house enquiries taking place and extra police patrols deployed to find his killer. Northamptonshire Police were called by East Midlands Ambulance Service at around 6.30pm on Friday after the man was discovered on a bench behind Auctioneers Court. Northamptonshire Police's Jen Lovatt said: 'This is an exceptionally sad incident and our thoughts and sincere condolences remain with Robert's family, who continue to be supported by specially trained officers. 'His death has understandably also had a big impact on the neighbourhood and wider community, and we would like to thank them for their support while officers continue to carry out searches at the scene, as well as those who have helped with our investigation. 'A dedicated team of officers is working around the clock to establish exactly what happened to Robert. 'A forensic post mortem examination carried out yesterday, Saturday, August 2, found that Robert sustained a wound to his arm. 'However, the exact cause of death is unascertained at this stage. 'We have already spoken with a number of people as part of our ongoing inquiries but we are continuing to appeal for anyone who may have information, who we haven't yet spoken with, to come forward. 'If you were in the area around Auctioneers Court or the riverbank in that area, overnight on Thursday 31 July to Friday 1 August, and you saw or heard anything that you think may be relevant to the investigation, please get in touch. 'We are also keen to hear from local residents, especially those who live in the apartments that overlook the river and the area near to where Robert was found. 'If you or anyone you know has any camera footage, from between approximately 7.30 pm on Thursday, July 31 and 7am on Friday, August 1, or any other information that may assist the investigation, please contact us as soon as possible. 'Likewise, if you think you may have seen or interacted with Robert during this time, we want to hear from you. 'Any information, no matter how small, can help us piece together exactly what happened.'
