Convicted rapist found dead in canal ‘wasn't perfect', funeral mass is told
'He had his struggles, his set-backs, maybe even some regrets.'
A convicted rapist whose body was recovered from the banks of the Royal Canal in Mullingar on Sunday was remembered as a person who 'wasn't perfect' at his funeral mass.
Relating the life of Peter Dinnegan to the parable of 'The Prodigal Son,' Fr. Andrei Stolnicu C.C. said it wasn't a tale relating to a perfect child coming home to a perfect house.
'It's about a messy return, a broken road and a father who never stops watching the horizon.
'Today, we remember Peter, and let's be honest, Peter wasn't perfect,' he said.
'He didn't pretend to be.
'He had his struggles, his set-backs, maybe even some regrets.
'But if that disqualified someone from being loved by God, then none of us would stand a chance.'
Among the mourners attending the funeral mass in the Cathedral of Christ the King in Mullingar on Friday morning were Peter's parents Paddy and Sally, his daughter Breanna and his brothers and sisters.
Emergency services had discovered his body after they were called to the scene at the Royal Canal in Mullingar just after 6am on Sunday last.
Gardaí are awaiting the results of a post-mortem which they say will determine the course of their investigation.
A book of condolences set up online in the wake of Dinnegan's death had to be closed after messages referring to Dinnegan's criminal past were repeatedly posted online.
Dinnegan had previously jailed for five years in 1999 after pleading guilty to raping a woman at Mill Road in Mullingar.
His trial heard how the victim had met Dinnegan in a fast-food shop and they had eaten burgers together on the night she was attacked. They had not known each other previously.
She told gardai how, when she was walking home, she noticed Dinnegan was following her and tried to run off, but he caught her.
The victim told gardai that while she was on the ground being raped she had felt around for a large stone or rock to hit her assailant.
Dinnegan, whose address was given in court at the time as St Joseph's Cottages, Mullingar, told his victim in court: "I am deeply sorry from the bottom of my heart for the hurt I have caused you."
He blamed alcohol for his action and said he had not drunk since that night.
Mr Justice Paul Carney noted that the then 23-year-old victim had feared she might not survive her ordeal and was now permanently psychologically scarred as a result.
He accepted that Dinnegan's remorse was genuine and suspended the final six months of the five years due to his early guilty plea.
This week, a garda spokesman said a post mortem will now take place and that investigations are ongoing.
'Gardaí were alerted to the discovery of a body in the Royal Canal, Mullingar, shortly after 6am on Sunday 08th June 2025,' a spokesperson for An Garda Síochána said.
'The deceased male was recovered from the canal by the Fire Service.
'His body has been transferred to the morgue, where a post-mortem examination will take place in due course. The results of the examination will determine the course of the Garda investigation.
'Investigations are ongoing.'
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