Murder drama that put O’Reilly case in the shade 25 years earlier

LAST Sunday, as the media had wall-to-wall coverage of Joe O’Reilly’s conviction for the murder of his wife, the 25th anniversary of one of the most notorious murders in Irish history went unnoticed.

It was exactly a quarter of century since Malcolm MacArthur attacked and mortally wounded nurse Bridie Gargan while she was sunbathing in Phoenix Park on July 22, 1982.

In a sense, the attention attracted by O’Reilly case was mild compared with the publicity devoted to the MacArthur case. The Gargan murder, in broad daylight, was a sensation because it was so brazen.