Arsonist gets eight years for fatal attack

A woman who set fire to a house, causing the death of a disabled grandmother, has been jailed for 12 years, with the last four suspended at Dundalk Circuit Criminal Court.

In a victim impact statement, the woman’s family said they cannot forgive the accused and she inflicted “a terrible pain”, on them.

Nicola Kavanagh, aged 28, of Rathmullen Park, Drogheda, Co Louth, admitted the manslaughter of Eva Berrill, aged 73. She also pleaded guilty to arson to the Berrill family home on the Chord Rd, Drogheda, on August 16, 2014.