Man sentenced to life in prison for rape and murder of Irish backpacker Danielle McLaughlin

Danielle McLaughlin, 28, from Buncrana in Co Donegal, was found dead in a secluded spot in Canacona, an area of Goa popular with holidaymakers, in March 2017

Danielle McLaughlin

A man has been sentenced to life in prison in India for the rape and murder of Irish backpacker Danielle McLaughlin in 2017, her family’s solicitor confirmed.

Local man Vikat Bhagat was found guilty at the District and Sessions Court in south Goa on Friday.

Ms McLaughlin, 28, from Buncrana in Co Donegal, was found dead in a secluded spot in Canacona, an area of Goa popular with holidaymakers, in March 2017.

She was in Goa celebrating the Hindu Holi festival — the festival of colours, which symbolises the triumph of good over evil, light over dark — with friends on March 13, 2017.

Her body was found in a field in southern Goa on March 14. An autopsy showed the former Liverpool John Moores University student suffered cerebral damage and constriction of the neck, causing her death.

Ms McLaughlin's mother, Andrea Brannigan, has been fighting for justice for her daughter through the long and traumatic seven years since then.

On Monday, the BBC reported that the District and Sessions Court, in South Goa, Margao, sentenced Bhagat to "rigorous" life imprisonment for murder.

He also received a second life term for rape, and three years for destroying evidence. All the sentences will run concurrently.

Adv Franco, defence counsel for Bhagat, told the media that his client would be appealing the conviction and sentence.

Ms McLaughlin’s family travelled to India for the verdict on Friday and expressed relief after the conclusion of what they said was an “eight-year murder trial”.

Her family thanked their legal team and their supporters in helping them achieve justice.

Family solicitor Desmond Doherty said the family are “exhausted” and “anxious to get home”. They are due to fly back to Ireland from India on Monday.

He said that, by his last count, there had been more than 250 hearings as part of the court process.

He told BBC’s Good Morning Ulster programme that Ms Brannigan was allowed legal representation in court during the entirety of the trial to assist the prosecution.

“The process here would be that a family would turn up at a court and be advised what was happening by the prosecution. She actually was centrally involved in the entire process, so it has come to a successful conclusion from that point of view.”

Speaking over the weekend, Ms Brannigan said: "The thing that I miss the most about Danielle is, I miss the fact that she had no future."

She told RTÉ's Morning Ireland: "Her future was stolen from her and I miss the fact that she has missed out on her little sisters growing up and her wee nephew and missed out on her friends and their next stepping stones when they went [on] and got married and had children.

"And she also never got the chance to get married and have children herself."

Ms Brannigan said she now hopes she can grieve for Danielle.

"The last few years have been tough, we have constantly been bombarding MPs, TDs and embassies, just looking for answers," she said.

"I've constantly been trying to get justice for Danielle because Danielle deserved the justice so she can finally rest in peace and that us as her family and friends can finally grieve for Danielle.

"So the last few years have been tough, I can finally feel like I can grieve Danielle and I am hoping that the rest of her family, her sisters and her friends can also now start grieving."