Man found guilty of Kiely rape, manslaughter

A Cork man was today found guilty of the rape and manslaughter of beautician Rachel Kiely.

Ian Horgan, 22, unintentionally killed Miss Kiely when he was just 16 years old, the Central Criminal Court ruled.

The 22-year-old’s body was found in a ruin in a park in Ballincollig, Co Cork, on October 26, 2000.

She had been raped and died from pressure to her neck.

The jury of seven men and five women returned its majority verdict on the rape charge following four hours and seven minutes of deliberations.

Miss Kiely had been out walking the family’s two dogs and never returned home. Her parents John and Rose raised the alarm and a member of a search party found her body.

In June 2002, Horgan was found guilty of the rape and murder of his victim and sentenced to life imprisonment.

The conviction was overturned in December 2004 in the Court of Criminal Appeal amid claims the judge had not directed the jury correctly over DNA samples.

Last month, his retrial began and on day two Horgan, of Innishmore Square, Ballincollig, pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

Horgan, dressed in a dark suit, white shirt and purple tie, was unemotional as the verdict was read out.

Justice Barry White, who will sentence Horgan at 2pm, said to the jury: “If I had been sitting in your shoes it would have been the verdict I would have returned on this case.”