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Inquest into death of man who killed Jastine Valdez reopens

The inquest has reopened into the death of the man who abducted and killed 24-year-old student Ja...
Newstalk
Newstalk

15.29 21 Jan 2020


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Inquest into death of man who...

Inquest into death of man who killed Jastine Valdez reopens

Newstalk
Newstalk

15.29 21 Jan 2020


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The inquest has reopened into the death of the man who abducted and killed 24-year-old student Jastine Valdez in May 2018.

Ms Valdez was kidnapped after she got off a bus in Enniskerry in Wicklow on May 19th, 2018.

Mark Hennessy from Bray grabbed her, and bundled her into his car – she later died of asphyxia.

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40-year-old Hennessy was shot dead by Gardaí on May 20th, and Ms Valdez's body was found the next day in Rathmichael, Co Dublin.

Last year, the jury at Jastine Valdez’s inquest returned a verdict of unlawful killing.

Meanwhile, the inquest into Mark Hennessy’s death has today reopened.

The jury was shown various CCTV footage, including clips of his car following the bus Jastine was travelling on.

Deposition

A deposition from Mark Hennessy’s wife was read to the jury, in which she says she spoke to him the following morning at 8 am after he hadn't come home.

He told her he had slept on the seafront and said “I’m not coming home. Sorry I love you.”

A Civil Defence volunteer told the inquest he saw a garda shoot Hennessy as he sat in his car.

James Magee said he saw a blade in Mark Hennessy's hand and witnessed him harming himself.

The jury heard he then saw Hennessy appear to reach down in his car for something, before the garda fired a shot through the vehicle's window.

He told the inquest he witnessed the garda return to his car to get his medical gear and place his gun on the ground.

The garda who shot Hennessy won't face criminal charges, while the names of officers involved in his death won't be published.

Reporting by Shane Beatty
Main image: File photo of Jastine Valdez

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