Killer's sentence increased by three years

The Court of Criminal Appeal has increased by three years the prison sentence imposed on a Latvian man for the manslaughter of another man, who died after he was stabbed in the neck.

The CCA had previously found that the original sentenced was unduly lenient.

In November 2006, Latvian national Jurijs Princs, Cromwellsfort House, Wexford, who was jailed for the manslaughter of Robertas Stravinskas, a Lithuanian, at a rented flat in Cromwellsfort House, in May 2005. He was acquitted of Mr Stravinskas' murder.

Princs was sentenced to four years imprisonment, which was appealed by the DPP on the grounds that it was unduly lenient.

Last October the Judge CCA with the Chief Justice Mr Justice John Murray presiding and sitting with Mr Justice Michael Hanna and Ms Justice Mary Irvine, found the four-year term "fell well below the appropriate range of sentence for this kind of case".

Today the court said a sentence of 10 years with the final three years suspended was more appropriate.

The Chief Justice said that manslaughter was "a most serious offence" which normally warrants a significant sentence, except "in the most exceptional of circumstances".

"Such circumstances do not arise in this case," he added.

In November 2006, the Central Criminal Court heard that two men had been drinking wine and vodka all day when Princs claimed the deceased made comments insulting his girlfriend and implying he was a homosexual.