Man convicted of murder at Limerick petrol station

A man has been convicted of the murder of a bread delivery man who was shot four times at close range in a Topaz petrol station in Limerick.

John Coughlan from Pineview Gardens, Moyross has been sentenced to life in prison for killing 35-year-old Daniel Treacy on the morning of February 22, 2010.

Coughlan walked into the Topaz shop on the Ennis Road and shot Darren Treacy three times in the head and once in the groin with a glock pistol before driving off.

The 33-year-old’s brother Darren was killed in November 2005 when he was beaten up by a number of people including the deceased’s brother.

The prosecution argued the gun attack on the father of two was revenge.

However the jury heard psychiatric evidence that Coughlan was suffering from a mental disorder namely paranoid schizophrenia at the time of the killing that would have substantially diminished his responsibility, making the crime one of manslaughter, not murder.

The jury has rejected the defence and convicted the electrician of murder.

In a victim impact statement, Daniel Treacy’s sister Aisling spoke of the sorrow, grief, heartache and sadness her family wakes up to each day.

Mr Justice Paul Carney has jailed John Coughlan for life.