Man serving life sentence for murder of Frankie Dunne says application to come off record by solicitors was due to a 'big misunderstanding' at appeal hearing

A 33-year-old man serving a life sentence for murder appeared at the Court of Criminal Appeal in Cork today where he said that the application by his lawyers to come off record in his appeal was a misunderstanding and he wanted them to continue to represent him.

As the application to come off record was being made by senior counsel Brian Mulvanney instructed by solicitor Phelim O’Neill, the appellant spoke up from the dock in the courtroom where he was accompanied by a Romanian interpreter.

Ionut Cosmin Nicholescu of Branistea Village, Damovita County, Romania, was found guilty by a jury that between December 27 and December 28 2019, he murdered Francis (Frankie) Dunne at Castlegreine House, Boreenamanna Road, Cork, contrary to Common Law. He was given the mandatory life sentence.

The decapitated remains of the 64-year-old Cork man were found in a garden on Boreenmanna Road at Christmas 2019.

Mr Mulvanney said the application to come off record was being made in light of the engagement of another firm of solicitors in Romania.

The appellant asked Ms. Justice Caroline Costello, President of the Court of Appeal, for permission to speak up about the matter in person and he did so in English. 

He said the firm of solicitors in Romania were not dealing with anything to do with his appeal. He said that they were representing members of his family who were trying to obtain legal documents from Ireland.

Mr Nicholescu said that his family were not acting for him and that he had not signed a contract or sought to be represented by the Romanian firm. “My family need documents… But we are not one single brain… It is not my will… They want to do some enquiry here, I cannot keep them away… This was a big misunderstanding.” 

Ms Justice Costello said further enquiries needed to be made and that the lawyers on record for the appeal should remain. Mr Mulvanney said that in the circumstances he was happy to withdraw the application to come off record.

Mr Justice Paul McDermott said at the sentencing hearing two years ago, “We now know that Francis Dunne’s murder consisted of being bludgeoned with a bottle and strangled. His body was then shockingly disrespected and dismembered. He (Nicholescu) has yet to express remorse for his crime or give any explanation for what he has done. I extend my sympathy to the family for their loss.” 

After the life sentence was imposed a statement was made on behalf of the family of the deceased: “Frankie was a father, grandfather, brother, uncle, nephew and friend to many. He lost a lot in his life due to alcohol dependence. The one thing he never lost was his family’s love and support. He was simply Frankie – a kind and gentle man.

“He had another family that he loved – his friends living in homeless shelters or on the streets of Cork. They were their own community – one without their own front door or sometimes even a mattress to lay down on, out of the cold.

“As Frankie’s family, who miss him every day we hope that no one else has to suffer the horrendous nightmare of what Frankie endured in the final hours of his life.”