A Galway man has pleaded guilty to unlawfully killing a Dublin man whose frozen body was found in a freezer behind a fishmonger’s shop in Galway city in June 2007.
Edward Griffin (45), of Cimín Mór, Cappagh Road, Salthill, pleaded guilty at the Central Criminal Court to the manslaughter of Patrick McCormack (52) at Henry Street, Galway on a date between June 1st and September 30th, 2002.
The body of Mr McCormack was found by the owner of a fishmonger's shop in Henry Street, Galway, on June 13th. A postmortem in Dublin had to be delayed until the body could thaw.
The postmortem results showed that he had died of head injuries and that he could was killed five years before his body was discovered. His hands were tied when he was found in the fish box at the back of the freezer unit.
Mr McCormack, from Malahide Road and Foley Street in Dublin, was reported missing by his family in July 2002.
He had convictions for robbery and firearm possession and had been questioned by gardaí in the late 1990s on suspicion of involvement in drugs. His abandoned vehicle was discovered in Shannon in October 2003.
Gardaí at first refused to rule out the possibility that he may have moved to Spain and had staged his own disappearance in a bid to escape Garda attention. However, when no contact was made with family members over a prolonged period, fears for his safety intensified.
By the time of his disappearance, he had graduated into more organised drug dealing, having spent the early part of his criminal past engaged in armed robberies.
He had associates in both Dublin and Galway and had regularly travelled to the west of Ireland as part of his drug-dealing activities.
Mr Justice Paul Carney will sentence Griffin on May 5th, when evidence in the case will be heard.