30 April 2012

Cahoon Found Guilty Of Murder

A Londonderry man has been found guilty of the murder of his pregnant ex-girlfriend.

Stephen Cahoon, 39, will be given a mandatory life sentence. The judge has not confirmed a minimum tariff.

Cahoon, from Harvey Street, admitted killing Jean Quigley, the mother of four, but denied murder.

Her body was found bruised and strangled.

A retrial was ordered after a jury at Dublin's Central Criminal Court failed to reach a verdict.

In a statement the PSNI said: "She suffered a horrendous death at Cahoon's hands after she told him she wanted to end their brief relationship. Cahoon has brutally taken Jean Quigley's life and robbed her four young children of a loving mother.

"This case made legal history on the island of Ireland. It was the first time a defendant was tried in the Republic under the Criminal Justice Jurisdiction Act 1976 for a non-terrorist crime committed in Northern Ireland. It shows how the law can be used to bring to justice those individuals who commit the most serious crimes, no matter where."

(CD/GK)