Donal McIntrye: How I got to know murder suspect Ian Bailey while making documentary

Sunday World

5 hours ago

STILL QUESTIONS |
'Bailey left this world as he lived most of his life – still a murder suspect'
Bailey, one of Ireland's most polarising figures, had his ashes scattered nearly a year-and-a-half after his death off the coast of west Cork, 15 miles from the scene of the murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier – a case that would define the last three decades of his life.
Bailey, who was convicted in absentia in a Paris court in 2019 and sentenced to 25 years in jail, was allowed to remain a free man following a 2020 High Court ruling that refused to extradite him to serve his murder sentence.
Victim Sophie Toscan du Plantier
He died of heart failure after a long-term struggle with alcohol and recreational drugs.
With Jeremy Irons' Pink Castle in view off the small pier at Skeaganore, near Ballydehob, a small group of invited family and friends gathered for the memorial service, led by Ian Bailey's sister, Kay Reynolds.
His ashes were scattered off the wild west Cork coastline, in accordance with his wishes. Despite some initial difficulties in distributing the ashes, the wind and tide eventually assisted.
Many of the 30 attendees were journalists or lawyers who had befriended Bailey over his nearly three-decade effort to clear his name. 'This was Bailey's lasting regret,' his sister said.
Frank Buttimer, his solicitor for more than 20 years, stated that Bailey 'steadfastly maintained his innocence until the end and never wavered from that'.
While acknowledging Bailey's complex character and numerous issues, his sister described him as a beloved brother who 'went downhill following the break-up of his long-term relationship with Jules Thomas.'
The service for Ian Bailey
Thomas was notably absent from the gathering, but despite their separation in 2021, she continued to protest his innocence regarding the terrible murder of the French film producer, whose head was bludgeoned with a concrete block in December 1996.
Bailey was convicted of assault and domestic abuse against Thomas in 2001 and received a three-month suspended sentence, but she also suffered other violent assaults by him in 1993 and 1996.
Many present – including this reporter – had been in contact with the Garda Cold Case team, and notes were compared.
Jim Sheridan, who collaborated with me on a five-part the Sky documentary series 'Murder at the Cottage', was present and had travelled from the Tribeca Film Festival in New York, where his new film on the case, Re-creation, premiered to rave reviews.
Ian Bailey
Sheridan was recently interviewed by gardaí at Dublin Airport regarding the case. He has been pursuing a very different line of inquiry than the detectives, who remain fixated on Ian Bailey.
'It would be a tragedy if gardaí were to convict him in his death based on his random phone texts and communications seized after his passing,' he told mourners.
I was similarly contacted by the Cold Case team based in Bantry.
It became clear that Ian Bailey remained their primary focus. One officer called me, confusing me with an English reporter, and enquired about contact details for journalists on the Sunday Times Insight team in the 1980s who had worked with Bailey on a GCHQ investigation.
Kay Reynolds scatters her brother's ashes
In a subsequent text message, the officer admitted: 'I have been unable to find a direct line for either ITV or The Guardian,' and asked for my help.
I missed another call from Bantry Garda Station on the eve of the funeral and returned it, explaining I had missed a call from what I presumed was the Cold Case team. I was told if they needed me, they would call again.
Given the criticism and concern over Garda conduct and competence since 1996, it's disheartening that the current team appears quite slow to follow fresh leads and seemingly unable to use the internet to contact major media outlets like The Guardian or ITV.
While gardaí continue to pursue several leads, journalist and creator of the acclaimed 'West Cork' podcast, Sam Bungey, is pursuing his own investigations and working on a new book about the case.
He promises new revelations, and many present doubt the prospects of the current cold case inquiry.
Quiet conversations hinted at new suspects and potential dramatic evidence emerging from journalistic, rather than police, sources.
Absent from the memorial service were the Netflix team, who produced a series to rival Sky's Murder at the Cottage, but who have been unequivocal in their claims Bailey was not only a legitimate suspect but the killer of Sophie Toscan du Plantier, in accordance with the 2019 French verdict.
I first met Ian Bailey in 2013 with Sunday World Investigations editor Nicola Talant. Initially, I was apprehensive, but Bailey invited us into his home, and was open to questions.
Kay Reynolds scatters her brother's ashes
Our investigation laid the groundwork for the Sky documentary, which included some remarkable and at times unhinged video footage of Bailey, some in the throes of alcohol and cannabis use.
Bailey kept his door open to all journalists, including those convinced of his guilt. He relished the limelight and sought out the camera. For more than 25 years, he fought to prove his innocence and regain his freedom.
But in 2021, when the threat of extradition to France ended, his purpose seemed to deflate.
Despite promises to give up alcohol, he never truly did, at least not for any sustained period.
He would often call me – 'another brother from another mother,' he'd say. I wasn't sure about that, but I was always honest with him. I would tell him, 'Ian, I don't know if you murdered Sophie, but there's no direct evidence you did.' Read more
In fact, the absence of Bailey's DNA from the scene, Sophie's body, and her clothes was a key factor in my view, pointing to other suspects and supporting his exoneration.
Bailey had volunteered his DNA at Gardaí's first request, understanding the science perhaps better than most of the officers, given his background covering murder trials as a news agency reporter before coming to Ireland.
Over the last decade, in cold case investigations, I've seen how violent, intimate attacks like Sophie's often leave a multiplicity of DNA evidence.
Even considering the potential for poor collection or exhibit management, it's inconceivable that a drunk, violent individual like Bailey would not have left biological markers at the scene.
Multiple reviews and tests – covering Ireland, the UK, and France – have found no trace of Bailey's DNA, despite extensive testing of crime scene materials, including nail swabs from Sophie.
This, to me, is the crucial evidence. Yet, there remains unconfirmed 'stranger DNA' at the scene that has yet to be identified.
As we say our final goodbyes to Ian Bailey, who spent nearly half his life as a murder suspect – and, in part, a convicted murderer in France – the case is unresolved.
However, modern DNA technology is more sensitive than that of 2008, the last time tests were conducted. If new testing is done, perhaps Bailey will finally be exonerated – or, conversely, convicted.
As the camera's clicked and Jim Sheridan filmed at the memorial, it was somehow fitting that Bailey left this world as he lived most of his life – in the glare of the media.