Two men jailed for murder of man found in scrubland in east Cork

Olivia Kelleher

The father of a man whose skeletal remains were found in a jute bag in scrubland in east Cork has thanked gardaí for bringing his son home for burial after he was murdered by two men whom he referred to as “monsters.”

A jury of 10 men and two women at a sitting of the Central Criminal Court in Cork found Luke Taylor (28) and Niall Long (33) guilty of the murder of Kieran Quilligan last week following a three-week trial.

Mr Quilligan (47) was missing for five months when his remains were found in a ravine at Whitewell, Rostellan, on January 29th, 2024.

He had suffered nineteen broken bones after being attacked with fists and a hammer-like object.

Gardaí had brought a PSNI cadaver dog to an area of interest to the investigation in east Cork, where they discovered the remains in a one-tonne gravel bag.

At a sentencing hearing in Cork on Wednesday, Stephen Quilligan, father of the late Kieran Quilligan, said that the two perpetrators would never be forgiven for what they had done.

Mr Quilligan said that he knew that there was foul play involved when his son disappeared without a trace on September 1st, 2023.

“It all started for us two years ago, and it has been a nightmare of our family ever since. We want to thank the gardaí who never gave up. They said they would bring Kieran home, and they did.

"Due to the nature of this case, any time we asked what was going on, the gardaí could not tell us. We were told when the case would come up in court, everything would come out," Mr Quilligan said.

"We were hearing what really went on for the first time and were shocked, angry and in disbelief that someone could do this to another person and pretend like nothing happened.”

Mr Quilligan said that it was beyond difficult to listen to the “horror stories” that emerged over the course of the trial. He said that the defendants didn’t show “one bit of remorse” for murdering his son.

He added that Kieran was a “loving son, brother and uncle” before thanking the gardaí and the prosecution team for treating Kieran “like a human being.”

Meanwhile, Catherine O’Flynn, the mother of the deceased, said that Kieran was “adored” by his family.

“Kieran had the biggest heart you ever seen. His birthday, the 13th of July, 2023, was the last time I saw Kieran. If I had known what was going to happen, I would never have let him leave the house. I will never forgive them (Niall Long and Luke Taylor) for what they have put our family through.

Colette O’Driscoll, the partner of the late Kieran Quilligan, said that he left their home on September 1st, 2023, and she never saw him again.

“Niall Long and Luke Taylor stole my future with the man I loved, adored and cherished.”

She said that she and Kieran were set to move into their forever home when he was violently taken from this world.

“Kieran was going to get the keys to his long-awaited castle. Now, unfortunately, Kieran will never get the keys to his castle.”

Whilst sentencing Luke Taylor and Niall Long to mandatory life imprisonment, Ms Justice Siobhan Lankford praised gardaí for the “exemplary” manner in which they carried out their comprehensive investigation.

She said that the perpetrators might well have never been found other than for the enormous work of investigating gardaí.

She also paid tribute to members of the Quilligan family for the manner in which they had conducted themselves in “difficult circumstances.”

Ms Justice Lankford added that Kieran Quilligan was taken from this world in the “most egregious circumstances.”

At the start of the sentencing hearing today the coordinator of the Garda investigation, Det Garda Ann O’Sullivan of the Bridewell Garda Station in Cork, said that the two men subjected Mr Quilligan to a “significant and sustained assault” on September 1st, 2023.

They then bundled him in to the boot of a car and brought him to a farmyard in Little Island. His body was then moved to the scrubland in Rostellan.

She detailed the extensive harvesting of CCTV in the case, which led gardaí to find the body of Mr Quilligan and determine the identity of his killers.

During the trial, prosecution senior counsel Donal O’Sullivan told the jury that the “instigating factor” for the murder was Kieran Quilligan stealing drugs and cash from Niall Long on September 1st, 2023.

Meanwhile, in the course of the trial, the jurors heard evidence from Assistant State Pathologist, Dr Margaret Bolster, who carried out a postmortem examination on the late Kieran Quilligan. Dr Bolster indicated that an exact cause of death could not be established because decomposition had led to the loss of organs.

However, she stated that what was not at doubt was that the injuries suffered by Mr Quilligan were consistent with a “severe assault.” Those injuries included fractures to his ribs, leg and hand bones, jaw bones, and skull.

Dr Bolster said that whilst the remains were skeletonised, there was a small piece of skin remaining, which consisted of a tattoo with the word “Mother” and a date. The skull was separate from the body, and there was a large amount of silt and vegetation.

Father of two, Niall Long, is formerly of St Michael’s Close in Mahon in Cork, whilst Luke Taylor is previously of Cherry Lawn in Blackrock in Cork.

Kieran Quilligan was living with his partner in Simon Community housing in Cork city at the time of his death.