'Evil, sadistic man' gets life for tourist's murder

THE German tourist who was murdered, sexually assaulted and decapitated was a random victim, chosen purely because she was in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Journalist Bettina Poeschel had gone to Newgrange to see one of Ireland's renowned landmarks, but bad luck placed her alone on a road and in sight of Michael Murphy, an evil, sadistic and unrepentant convicted killer, who was given a mandatory life sentence for her murder yesterday.

Murphy, 42, had a string of previous convictions, including manslaughter. He was tried for the murder of 64-year-old Catherine (Kitty) Carroll in 1984 and served eight years of a 12-year-sentence. When he saw the 28-year-old German tourist walking on her own, he only had one thing in mind.

"It was just an opportunity (for Murphy). I think it was a tragedy that a young lady like Bettina Poeschel who came to this country and to see the historic sight of Newgrange and quite simply because she was on the road on that particular day, her life was taken so cruelly, so unnecessarily. It was an opportunistic crime. It was bad luck," Detective Inspector Gerry O'Brien, who headed the investigation, said yesterday. He said the death of Kitty Carroll bore the same hallmarks as Bettina's murder.

He was speaking after Murphy, from Drogheda, Co Louth, was convicted and sentenced yesterday to life after a four-week trial at Dublin's Central Criminal Court.

Ms Poeschel disappeared on September 25, 2001, the last day of her week's holiday with friends in Ireland. Her body was found buried in dense undergrowth in Donore, Co Meath, more than three weeks later.

Ms Poeschel was found lying face down, naked from the waist down, except for a pair of black pants around her knees. Traces of semen were found on her clothes.

The journalist's head and spinal cord were detached from her body, which was so decomposed the cause of death could not be established.

Murphy was arrested and charged with her murder days later. The labourer had been working on the M1 Drogheda bypass close to the scene.

Supt Fergus Doggett said: "There is only one description for a man like that and it is evil."

He said he would have strong reservations about releasing Murphy on parole and said there was always the possibility he could kill again.

"There was no sign of remorse whatsoever. He is a very, very cold person," he added.

Murphy showed no reaction as the jury delivered its verdict.

Outside the court, the victim's father, Juergen Poeschel, who attended the trial every day with his other daughter Cornelia, said: "It marks the closure of a bad chapter for my family. I want to thank the garda for their investigations and support and I also want to thank the local community for their assistance and the sympathy they have shown us."