Second man found guilty of murder of Kieran Quilligan in Co Cork

Olivia Kelleher

A second man has been found guilty of the murder of a man whose skeletonised remains were found in a jute bag in a ravine in Whitewell, Rostellan in East Cork last year.

Kieran Quilligan (47) from Togher in Cork was last seen alive on September 1st, 2023.

He was missing for five months when his remains were detected on January 29th 2024, after gardaí brought a cadaver dog to scrubland in the county.

The jury of 10 men and two women at the Central Criminal Court in Cork heard that he had been beaten with a hammer like weapon.

Mr Quilligan suffered multiple bone fractures.

However, an exact cause of death could not be determined because of the decomposition of organs.

The jury spent close to six hours deliberating before Friday finding Luke Taylor (27) previously of Cherry Lawn, Blackrock in Cork guilty of murder.

His co accused Niall Long (33) formerly of St Michael’s Close in Mahon in Cork was yesterday (Thursday) found guilty of the murder of Mr Quilligan.

Ms Justice Siobhan Lankford thanked the jurors for their diligent service and excused them from jury service for a period of 10 years.

Both men now face mandatory life sentences. Mr Long and Mr Taylor were remanded in custody for sentencing on October 29th at 10.30am next.

Meanwhile, over the course of the trial Prosecution senior counsel, Donal O’Sullivan, noted that the jury had watched a “staggering amount” of CCTV with gardaí harvesting thousands of hours of footage.

Mr O’Sullivan also indicated that but for the incredible garda investigation the remains of Mr Quilligan might never have been found.

In his opening speech to the jury Mr O’Sullivan said that the “instigating factor” in the murder was an incident where Kieran Quilligan and another man allegedly stole drugs and cash from Niall Long on September 1st, 2023.

The jury heard that Mr Quilligan left his apartment in Cork later that evening with Luke Taylor telling his partner he would be back in a matter of minutes.

Mr Quilligan was tracked walking to St Finbarr’s Place in Cork city alongside Luke Taylor. He never emerged from the lane.

The Prosecution evidence was that a car was brought to the top of the lane and that Mr Quilligan was bundled in to the boot.

The car was tracked going to Little Island in Co Cork and subsequently heading to Rostellan where the remains of the deceased were found on January 29th, 2024.

In his closing speech to the jury Mr O’Sullivan said that Kieran Quilligan was “lured” to his death by Luke Taylor.

He stated that Mr Taylor brought him to a laneway at St Finbarr’s Place in Cork city on September 1st 2023 where he and Mr Long “ambushed” him.

He described the activities of the two men as a joint enterprise.

The jury also heard evidence from Assistant State Pathologist, Dr Margaret Bolster who carried out a postmortem on the remains of Mr Quilligan.

Dr Bolster made an examination of the body at the scene. She described going down a ravine off a roadway where there was a jute grave.

Underneath this was another jute gravel bag with a “pelvic bone protruding.”

Dr Bolster said she could see ribs and a skull with a “bag around it tied with a knot.” The skull was separate from the body and there was a large amount of silt and vegetation.

Dr Bolster noted a cable tie around the left ankle and right shin of the remains and two knotted pieces of plastic around the neck.

She said that they were likely to have been used for the purposes of moving the body.

Dr Bolster said that the injuries sustained by Mr Quilligan were consistent with a “severe assault in a laneway.” Those injuries included fractures to his ribs, chest, leg and hand bones, jaw bones, neck and skull.

Dr Bolster said whilst the remains were skeletonised there was a small piece of skin remaining which consisted of a tattoo with the word “Mother” and a date.

In the course of the trial the jury heard evidence from Garda James Byrd who said that on the 8th of September 2023 Luke Taylor called to Anglesea Street Garda Station.

He said that he was “concerned for the welfare of his friend and wanted to assist gardai.”

He informed gardaí that he had been in the company of Mr Quilligan on the night he was last seen but that they had parted ways in Cork city centre.

The trial also heard evidence from Det Garda Anne O’Sullivan who said that in March of 2024 Luke Taylor sent a text to his girlfriend saying that this man Quilligan “was killed in an unknown place unknown time.”

He further stated “I’m not the person that was robbed. I had nothing to do with that.”

In the text exchange Mr Taylor insisted that his only involvement was that he bought drugs off Niall Long. He also texted “they’re trying to put me in the mix.”

The jurors also heard evidence from Sgt Maurice O’Connor. He said that Niall Long had sent a text message to his mother Janice Long on September 2nd, 2023.

She texted him saying that her jeep smelled of Dettol.

Sgt O’Connor said that Mr Long texted his mother. In his reply he stated that the boot of the car was cleaned because “the fella that robbed me got a hiding and was thrown in the boot after.”