Kyle Hayes's brothers jailed for viciously beating friend with a hurley and a wrench

Their friend and former Limerick minor football star Ciaran Ryan said: 'I fear for my safety on a daily basis ... sometimes I don’t even want to wake up.'
Kyle Hayes's brothers jailed for viciously beating friend with a hurley and a wrench

Daragh Hayes was jailed for three years with the final six months suspended. File picture: Brendan Gleeson

Two brothers of Limerick hurling star Kyle Hayes were jailed on Thursday for savagely beating a friend with a hurley and a wrench.

Daragh Hayes, aged 37, and Cian Hayes, aged 33, of Ballyashea, Kildimo, Co Limerick, lured their friend and former Limerick minor football star Ciaran Ryan to Daragh Hayes’s house and set upon him with a hurley and a foot-long steel wrench.

“They beat me like they wanted me dead,” an emotional Ciaran Ryan told the court previously.

The two convicted brothers erroneously believed Mr Ryan had gotten romantically involved with Daragh Hayes’s ex-partner and mother of his two children. The court heard there was no evidence to support this false assertion and that it had no basis in reality.

Mr Ryan, who at the time was best man to Cian Hayes, suffered a collapsed lung, multiple fractures to a leg, arm, fingers, and extensive bruising, Limerick Circuit Criminal Court heard.

The victim was lured to the house by the defendants on the pretense of making arrangements for Cian Hayes impending nuptials.

Ciaran Ryan said the unprovoked attack 'changed my life forever'. Picture Brendan Gleeson
Ciaran Ryan said the unprovoked attack 'changed my life forever'. Picture Brendan Gleeson

Mr Ryan said the unprovoked attack “changed my life forever”. “I had happily attended at Daragh’s home to discuss Cian’s upcoming wedding, I now know they deliberately lured me there to viciously beat me and interrogate me,” Mr Ryan said.

The qualified carpenter who runs a car sales business in Limerick city said he still finds himself paralysed with fear by the “psychological carnage” of the attack.

The attack had been “oppressive” on him and his family in the Kildimo parish, he said. “It is like a veil of darkness descended on me that day, for no reason, a darkness that still lingers in my parish until now, but Cian and Daragh have yet to apologise to me.” 

Mr Ryan said he and his family had been “semi-shunned” by some within their parish “for speaking up against the Hayes brothers”. “Since this assault my life has been hell in my local parish, the Hayes brothers made up plenty of false rumours and accusations about me. 

"I live in Pallaskenry and work in Limerick city. I was a high-level sports star and now I am afraid to set foot in any local pitch in my parish,” Mr Ryan added.

Cian Hayes got two-and-a-half years with the final six months suspended. File picture: Brendan Gleeson
Cian Hayes got two-and-a-half years with the final six months suspended. File picture: Brendan Gleeson

Mr Ryan said he continues to suffer with “horrendous nightmares and suicidal thoughts” and said: “I fear for my safety on a daily basis ... sometimes I don’t even want to wake up.” 

“Cian picked up the big spider wrench and Daragh picked up a hurley, and without explanation, they beat me like they wanted me dead. I tried to protect my face from the strikes by Cian, the venom in his eyes terrified me.

“Cian shattered a number of my ribs and punctured my lung, all the while Daragh was beating me on the other side of my body with a hurley. Darragh beat me so hard with the hurley that the hurley snapped, I couldn’t catch my breath, I didn’t know what was going on or how I was going to escape.

“I was battered on both sides of my body, between my arms, lungs, rib cage, legs and fingers.” Mr Ryan said that after conceding that he had told them the truth, Daragh Hayes cried and told Cian Hayes "we went too far", but Mr Ryan said “Cian showed absolutely zero remorse”. 

Mr Ryan said the brothers threatened him and outlined ‘the consequences’ of telling anyone what had happened. Lily Buckley, prosecuting barrister, said Ciaran Ryan had brought a cake, wine and beer to the house thinking it was to be a “pleasant visit”.

The two defendants quickly began interrogating Mr Ryan about a text message he had sent to Daragh Hayes's ex-partner several months beforehand, which the court heard had been entirely innocent in nature. The attack happened in the front sitting room of Daragh Hayes’ house, around 7.15pm, on September 29, 2021.

Detective Sergeant Michael Reidy, Newcastle West Garda Station, told Ms Buckley it was a “severe beating”. The prosecuting barrister said Cian Hayes and Darragh Hayes stood over Mr Ryan and told him “you better start talking” before raining down blows on him with the hurley and a wrench.

“They (Cian and Daragh Hayes) hit him all over his body, he slid onto the floor and was roaring at them to stop, he tried to calm them down, he was finding it hard to breath due to a collapsed lung from the impact. 

Ms Buckley said:

Mr Ryan was struggling to breathe, but Cian Hayes said to his brother, ‘don’t mind him, Daragh, he can breathe’, and they both began hitting him again on either side.

“They hit him everywhere except his head and his feet, they paused to question him again, but they believed he was lying, and they hit him again three or four more times.” 

“Daragh Hayes broke the hurley hitting Mr Ryan with it. He then demanded the wrench from Cian Hayes and he hit Mr Ryan a blow to the right leg. Mr Ryan believed at this point that he had broken his knee cap, he was begging for them to stop, but they just carried on,” said Ms Buckley.

Afterwards, and despite realising their mistake, Daragh Hayes threatened Mr Ryan that his car sales business and his girlfriend’s family home would be targeted if he told anyone what had happened. Ms Buckley said Daragh Hayes also warned Mr Ryan to stay out of local pubs and shops.

The two defendants put Mr Ryan back in his car because he couldn’t physically get to the vehicle due to his extensive injuries. The two brothers also used tools to straighten Mr Ryan’s car keys which had been “bent out of shape” in the impact of the beating.

The three men had grown up together and, up until the day of the attack, they had been close friends.

Mr Ryan underwent numerous surgical procedures to first treat his injuries and afterwards to fit metal implants put in his broken bones. He also had to undergo an extensive physiotherapy regime.

Investigating gardaí matched blood stains found on cushions in Daragh Hayes’ home to Ciaran Ryan’s DNA. This proved to be “pivotal” in supporting Mr Ryan’s allegations about the attack, Ms Buckley said.

The two defendants, who had no previous convictions were initially charged with assault “causing serious harm” but the State accepted their guilty pleas to assault causing harm, and pleas to producing the hurley and wrench during the assault.

Judge Colin Daly said the brothers “lured” Mr Ryan to the house with “stunning premeditation” having “organised the perfect conditions for their attack”.

He jailed Daragh Hayes for three years with the final six months suspended, and sentenced Cian Hayes to two-and-a-half years with the final six months suspended.

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