Latest news with #JosefPuska
BBC News
17-06-2025
- BBC News
Relatives of Ashling Murphy's killer guilty of impeding murder probe
Relatives of convicted killer Josef Puska have been found guilty by a court in the Republic of Ireland of charges relating to the aftermath of the killing of Ashling Murphy was stabbed to death by Josef Puska while walking along the banks of a canal close to her home in Tullamore, Co Offaly, in of the killer's brothers, Marek Puska and Lubomir Puska Jr, were found guilty at the Central Criminal Court in Dublin on Tuesday of withholding information knowing it might be of assistance in securing their brother's brothers' wives, Jozefina Grundzova and Viera Gaziova were found guilty of burning Jozef Puska's clothes in an effort to impede his prosecution. Jozef Puska's wife, Lucia Istokova, had pleaded guilty just before the trial started to withholding information about the included witnessing Jozef Puska arriving home with visible injuries, admitting killing or seriously injuring a woman with a knife, and that he owned a bicycle the gardaí were interested Istokova's plea can only be reported now as legal restrictions were in place while the trial of Jozef Puska's brothers and their wives was taking evidence the court was told that after murdering Ms Murphy, Puska went to the house he shared in Tullamore with his wife and their children as well as his two brothers and their lawyers argued that the brothers knew what Puska had done, and their wives knew why they were burning his clothes. Defence lawyers for the two brothers said that they were worried about incriminating five were remanded on continuing bail and the case will be mentioned on 7 July when a sentence date will be Murphy's mother and father, Kathleen and Ray, her sister Amy and brother Cathal were in court on Tuesday to hear the verdicts.
Sunday World
14-06-2025
- Sunday World
Total of 404 prisoners now sleeping on mattresses in Irish jail cells
Inmates used to having their own cells are suddenly having to share with one or two other people. A total of 404 prisoners are now sleeping on mattresses in overcrowded Irish jails. The biggest number, 103, are lying on the floor in Mountjoy Prison, followed by 80 in the Midlands, 56 in Cork, 43 Wheatfield, 38 in Cloverhill, 34 in Limerick, Castlerea and seven in Portlaoise. There are also nine women inmates sleeping on mattresses in Mountjoy women's prison, the Dochas Centre. The latest data from the Irish Prison Service also disclosed there are currently a sky-high 5,413 prisoners in custody - 878 more than the official number of beds they have in custody. The number of people jailed passed the 5,000 mark last year. The overcrowding issue has led to increasing tensions in many prisons. Inmates used to having their own cells are suddenly having to share with one or two other people. Most lifers such as Aisling Murphy's killer Josef Puska, and notorious murderers Graham Dwyer and Joe O'Reilly still have cells on their own. The biggest number of prisoners in the country are in Mountjoy with 988 in the men's jail, 182 in the women's prison and 97 many of them sex offenders in what is known as the Training Unit. There are 1,040 prisoners being held in the Midlands jail. A senior prison officer in Mountjoy said they have run out of space and the overcrowding issue is causing a lot of infighting and bad blood between some prisoners. Only last weekend one inmate was left fighting for his life after being attacked in the exercise yard. Stock image Today's News in 90 Seconds - June 14 2025 Career criminal and convicted killer Stephen Kearney, from Ballymun, Dublin is being treated in the Beaumont Hospital, Dublin and is in a critical condition. Kearney previously served nine years for manslaughter as teenager after he beat a young man, Francis Gallagher, 18 to death in 2004. He was due to be freed from Mountjoy in the next few weeks. The Irish Prison Service says it has a legal obligation to accommodate every prisoner spend to jail by the courts irrespective of whether it has the room or not.
RTÉ News
20-05-2025
- RTÉ News
Brothers and their wives go on trial for assisting Ashling Murphy killer
The trial of two brothers and their wives, who are accused of withholding information or assisting Jozef Puska after he had murdered 23-year-old school teacher Ashling Murphy in Tullamore three years ago, has gotten under way. Jozef Puska was convicted of murdering Ms Murphy in January 2022 close to a canal in Tullamore. Jozef Puska's brothers Marek, aged 34, and Lubomir, aged 35, and their wives Jozefina Grundzova, aged 31, and Viera Gaziova, aged 38, who have addresses in Mucklagh, Tullamore, Co Offaly are on trial over their alleged actions after the murder. Lubomir Puska is charged with withholding information by failing, without reasonable excuse, to tell a member of An Garda Síochána as soon as was practicable that Jozef Puska returned home to Mucklagh on the night of 12 January, 2022 with visible injuries and admitted to "cutting" a female with a knife. It is further alleged that he failed to disclose that Jozef Puska travelled to Dublin that night. Marek Puska is also charged with withholding information about Jozef Puska's visible injuries, that he had admitted to "killing or seriously injuring" a female with a knife and that he travelled to Dublin that night. Marek Puska is further alleged to have been aware of an arrangement to burn clothing worn by Jozef Puska at the time of the murder. Both men have pleaded not guilty to the offences, which are charged under the Offences Against the State, Amendment Act 1988. Jozefina Grundzova, who is married to Marek Puska, and Viera Gaziova, who is married to Lubomir Puska, are accused of assisting in burning clothing between 12 January and 14 January, without reasonable excuse, intending to impede the apprehension or prosecution of Jozef Puska, knowing or believing him to have committed the offence of murder or some other arrestable offence within the same category or of a similar nature. Ms Grundzova and Ms Gaziova pleaded not guilty to the offences, which are charged under the Criminal Law Act 1997. Prosecuting barrister Sean Gillane opened the trial today telling the jury that Ashling Murphy was exercising along the canal in Tullamore when she was attacked by Josef Puska who stabbed her 11 times in the neck before fleeing the scene. Sean Gillane said Josef Puska went to the house where his brothers and their families were living in before going to Dublin that evening to his parents house in Crumlin. He said CCTV footage shows Josef Puska going to an ambulance to be taken to hospital and he was wearing different clothing and was cleanly shaven. The prosecution said the four accused in this case were arrested a few days later and gave statements in Tullamore Garda station. Mr Gillane said they "effectively mislead the gardaí" with their statements and did not disclose crucial information. He also sais gardaí had also been looking for the clothes that Josef Puska had been wearing and were unable to find.
