Coulter pays moving tribute to son’s murdered friend

COMPOSER and singer Phil Coulter paid a moving tribute to Sebastian Creane yesterday, describing him as a man “any father would be delighted to have as a son.”

Mr Coulter said he knew Mr Creane for some 11 years through his friendship with his own sons, which developed from their days at St Gerard’s School in Bray.

He said he was one of “six lads” who hung out at the Coulter family home.

“Sebastian was without doubt one of the gentlest, one of the most respectful, one of the quietest and one of the most charming lads that I’ve ever encountered,” said Mr Coulter.

“He’s the kind of lad any father would be delighted to have as a son. Any father would be glad to have his daughter introduce him as a boyfriend. He was a really sweet kid.”

The composer gave an eloquent tribute to the 22-year-old man in an interview on the Joe Duffy radio show yesterday.

Contrary to certain media reports, Mr Coulter said the horror that unfolded at the Creane household on Cuala Grove did not stem from a night’s drinking.

“To say what happened was after a drink-fuelled night, nothing could be further from the truth. Seb was not a party animal, was anything but an all-night boozer.”

He said Mr Creane was “immensely talented” and had done some work on his website.

“He was immensely bright, very talented, very serious about his work, had a future that was stretching out before him. What a terrible, terrible waste of a life, for nothing at all.”

He said Mr Creane’s parents had done everything right in bringing their son up.

“What do you do to protect your kids? Seb’s parents did all the right things, gave him a good education, encouraged him in his talent, they monitored the way he was spending his social life.”

Mr Coulter’s son, Ryan, was photographed visibly distressed as he lay a wreath at the Creane household from all the Coulter family – Phil, his wife Geraldine, their sons Daragh and Ryan and their four daughters, Dominque, Danielle, Alexandra and Georgina.

He said three of his children had flown home, including Daragh, who Mr Coulter said, was one of “Seb’s closest friends”.

Mr Coulter – who himself had a sister murdered – likened the situation to a “kind of nightmare, an unreal thing, something you read about in the papers”.

He said: “We have become immune to statistics of violence in this country. Knife crime is just a part of it. We have become as a nation, a race, immune to this culture of violence. It’s a scary thing.”

He said to lose someone you love in a violent manner, such as in this case, was very difficult to accept.

“When death is so unnecessary, so brutal and so futile as this was, it’s very, very difficult for Sebastian’s friends and family”.

He said his heart went out to both Mr Creane’s family and that of his killer, Shane Clancy.

Mr Coulter said as far as he knew Mr Creane was an acquaintance with Mr Clancy.

“His connection was that he was an ex-boyfriend of a girl Sebastian was starting to go out with in the last two to three months.”

He said he was renaming their patio – where Mr Creane, his son and their mates hung out – as “Seb’s deck”.

He added: “All of Sebastian’s friends will never forget him. He will be forever alive with them.”