John Whelan, brother of Sharon Whelan who was murdered alongside her two daughters in 2008, expresses concern that their killer, Brian Hennessy, could be released from prison as early as March 2026.
The brother of a woman brutally murdered alongside her two young daughters on Christmas Day morning, has expressed his family's growing fear that the killer could be released from jail in just over a year. Sharon Whelan, 30, and her daughters Zarah, seven, and two-year-old Nadia, were killed by postman Brian Hennessy at their home in Windgap, Co. Kilkenny, in 2008.
Hennessy broke into the family's home, raped and strangled the mother-of-two before setting a fire to conceal his crime, a blaze that killed the two young children. In the years since the barbaric triple murder, Sharon's brother John Whelan has campaigned tirelessly for longer sentences for serious offenders, such as in the UK where whole life tariffs are imposed in court without the possibility of parole. The 54-year-old father-of-three, who is chairman of crime victims' group SAVE, stated that the 'lenient' system in Ireland means he and his family are facing the nightmare scenario of Hennessy being released as early as March 2026. Hennessy is now in his 15th year behind bars at Dublin's Arbour Hill, having been given three 'concurrent' life sentences, which effectively means he serves just one. As a lifer, he was eligible to apply for parole after 12 years behind bars, and every subsequent two years after that - meaning he could be released in just 15 month's time when his next parole hearing is due. Mr. Whelan said: 'We just don't know when Hennessy will be freed. He was denied parole at the last hearing back in March this year, but the hearings take place every two years. So he could be released at any time
Triple Murder Parole Prison Release Crime Victims Justice System
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