Dunbar begins life sentence for manslaughter of teenager

CHILD-KILLER Ronnie Dunbar has begun a life sentence for the manslaughter of Melissa Mahon in what a judge described as an “appalling breach of trust” by the 44-year-old father of three.

Dunbar, also known as Ronald McManus, of Rathbraughan Park, Sligo, was cleared in May of the 14-year-old’s murder but was found guilty of her manslaughter after evidence from his daughters that he strangled their friend who was on the run from a care home.

At his sentencing hearing yesterday, Justice Barry White told the killer that while the penalties open to the court in manslaughter cases were extensive, there were “rare and exceptional” occasions when the most severe penalty — life imprisonment — was warranted and this was one such case.