Schoolteacher Ashling Murphy was brutally killed by Jozef Puska while she was out for a run along the Grand Canal
The boyfriend of murder victim Ashling Murphy says she made him the man he is today, as he marks the fourth anniversary of her death.
Beloved schoolteacher Ashling (23) was brutally killed by monster Jozef Puska while she was out for a run along the Grand Canal in Cappincur, near Tullamore, Co Offaly, on this day four years ago.
Family and friends of Ashling are due to remember her in a walk along the canal to her memorial later this afternoon. And in an emotional post to social media, her boyfriend Ryan Casey shared a photograph of them together and wrote: “One of the hardest things we all have to do in life is to try and turn the page to the next chapter, knowing that someone who meant so much to you won’t be in it. You made me the man that I am today, and you will always be my moral compass! Rest in Peace Ash.”
His tribute comes as the family of the 23 year old stated that she was “dearly missed” and despite another year passing, she remains “forever close in our hearts”.
In a post on the Ashling Murphy Memorial Fund, the family wrote: “Today we remember our beloved Ashling, on her 4th anniversary, who is so dearly missed each and every day, especially by her heartbroken family and wide circle of friends. Another year has passed without you, but you remain forever close in our hearts”, reports the Irish Mirror.
The Ashling Murphy Memorial Fund was set up by her family to support the causes that mattered most to her. The tributes come after a mass honouring the young woman’s life was held at St Brigid’s Church in Mountbolus yesterday.
A commemorative walk to Ashling’s Memorial Shrine on the Grand Canal in Tullamore is scheduled for this afternoon. Participants will gather at Digby Bridge Car Park in Capincurr at 3pm before making the 30-minute journey to the shrine.
In an exclusive podcast interview Irish Mirror last year, Ryan Casey expressed his frustration that Ashling’s killer Puska could potentially be freed in just two decades.
“The average has come up a little bit in recent years but the average is 21 years. That’s crazy. That’s not life. I know our prisons are places of reform but there has to be categories to it,” he said.
“It has to depend on the nature of the crime, like this is crazy stuff, 21 years time. I’m only 27. That guy, given our current system, is going to be out and I’m going to be touching late 40s. “It’s all talk and very little action. I’m not a politician, I’m not a barrister or a State legislator but how is that a hard piece of legislation to pass and bring in and run through the Dail?
“I don’t think anyone would have any argument with it,” he said.
When asked if he felt betrayed by Helen McEntee and the government, Ryan responded: “Yeah absolutely. We all do. The justice system let us down. When you’re promised the change will come in the time before that trial, don’t make that promise if you can’t meet it.”
He expressed his frustration over the sentencing and Tony Hunt’s comments, saying: “That’s infuriating to know that he was sentenced then to life and for Tony Hunt to make those comments. It’s even more infuriating because it just highlights the fact that they didn’t even try. They done nothing. And it can’t be done retrospectively.”
The devastated young man also shared the distressing moment when he received a call informing him of a terrible incident involving his beloved on the afternoon of 12 January 2022. His last face-to-face conversation with Ashling on the 10th is now a poignant memory, as they decided not to touch each other due to coronavirus>Covid restrictions at the time.
“I met her two days beforehand. It would have been the last time I saw her. We had Covid in the house at the time. I didn’t have it, but we were isolating. And she had done the shopping for us on the 10th, so we couldn’t go anywhere. She brought in the shopping, and she left it at the doorstep, and I brought it in. There was a moment. She was just about to sit in her car, and we kind of locked eyes for a second. I can’t even describe it. In the aftermath, I thought about it a lot.”
He expressed deep regret over their last encounter, lamenting: “Huge regret around that moment obviously. Why didn’t I just say feck the restrictions, who cares. “Why didn’t I just hold her. “”.
For all the latest news, visit the Belfast Live homepage here and sign up to our daily newsletter here.
