Moane never apologised to us says devastated Woods family

Rodney Edwards • Published 20 Sep 2012 13:00

FORMER Fermanagh GAA player Ciaran Woods from Lisnaskea pleaded with Gary Moane to leave him alone during a drunken row at a house in Tempo in the early hours of July 20 2010.

But Moane, an alcoholic from Brookeborough, didn't listen to the father-of-one's pleas.

Instead he stabbed him twice in the chest and left him to die as he went on a violent, alcohol-fueled rampage.

After pleading guilty to manslaughter the 37-year-old was jailed for five years in court on Friday.

Disappointed with the ruling, Ciaran's sister Shauna says the killing has left her close-knit family devastated.

"He stabbed my brother then left him bleeding on the floor. To leave somebody dying on the floor like that, it's very hard to take in," she told The Impartial Reporter.

Shauna -- who lost her brother Oliver in a car accident in 1995 -- believes there is "a flaw in the law".

"It allows you, if you have alcohol-dependency syndrome, to be tried for a certain amount of years. To think he only got five years for taking our brother is ridiculous. We are devastated as a family to have lost someone again. Oliver died the same month Ciaran was murdered. We are broken. We are heart-broken that we have to experience this again. You think, how can this be happening?"

She has rejected the apology made by Moane through his barrister.

"We were never informed of any apology from Gary Moane personally.

"His barrister did say he apologised to the family, but we were never contacted at any stage. It was all through the court -- if you are going to apologise you need to do it personally," she said.

And while she says she could never speak to him, or meet with him, she does have this message for her brother's killer: "He should just realise the loss he has caused our family and Ciaran's daughter Erin. Ciaran begged him not to do anything to him, because he had a daughter, but that didn't stop Gary Moane doing what he did, and he has children," she said.

For Ciaran's parents, Breege and John, his sisters, Lorna, Shauna, Claire, Yvonne, Donna and Elaine and his brothers Martin, Brian and John the pain and torment continues two years on.

"We will never be able to forget this and what happened last week in court, hearing what happened that night, has brought it all back. It is very difficult to understand and our lives will never be the same again," said Shauna.

Tweet

This article appeared in Impartial Reporter 20 Sep 12

Return to the main index, get more from this section or browse our News archives.