'An utterly needless act:' Man convicted of murdering his wife in Cork handed mandatory life sentence
Last month, seven women and five men took five hours and seven minutes of deliberations across two days to reach their unanimous verdict that Regin Rajan murdered his wife at their home at Cardinal Court, Wilton, Cork, on July 14, 2023. Picture: Dan Linehan.
The brutal murder of a beautiful young woman in Wilton in Cork caused the greatest devastation some 8,000 kilometres away in Kerala where her Indian family feel the daily pain of her loss.
As 43-year-oldRegin Parithapara Rajan was today given the mandatory life sentence at the Central Criminal Court in Cork for murdering his wife, 38-year-old Deepa Dinamani, by slashing her throat, a picture emerged of what life is now like for her family.
Her father sits broken in silence. Deepa’s mother can break down at any time without warning. The dead woman’s brother has lost his closest friend. And then there is her six-year-old son – asking questions that cannot be answered.
Ms Justice Siobhán Lankford today described it as an utterly needless act that had caused the loss of an excellent human being and had forever tainted the lives of those who loved her.
As for her murderer, the judge said he had used the trial as an attempt to besmirch her good name suggesting she was the author of her own death, even in the face of overwhelming prosecution evidence.
“He had no respect for the autonomy of his wife as an individual person and could not accept her forging a new life for herself and her child. Showing no empathy, he appeared to feel sorry for himself, and that in some unfathomable way he felt he was the wronged party,” the judge said as she expressed her deepest sympathies to Deepa’s family.
Deepa’s brother Ullas delivered the family victim impact statement remotely from India today in the same way that he gave his evidence in the murder trial, with respect and dignity as he struggled with tears.
“There are no words that can truly convey the depth of the pain, the grief and devastation that my family and I have been living with since July 14, 2023, – the day my only sister, my best friend, was taken from us in the most horrific way.
“My sister was not just a sibling to me – she was my confidante, my closest friend and the heart of our family. We were incredibly close. We shared everything – our hopes, our fears, our joys. Her presence brought happiness to our home and her absence has left an unbearable void that we are still struggling to live with every single day," he said.
“She was an amazing daughter to our parents – selfless, caring and compassionate. Seeing my mother still break down, often without warning, overwhelmed with sorrow, is one of the hardest things for me as a son. And I sit there helplessly, unable to ease her pain. My father, once a pillar of strength to us, one of the toughest men I have ever seen, now sits in silence, broken by the loss of his beloved daughter. He doesn't speak much these days, but his face reveals the pain he's in.
“But perhaps the most heartbreaking impact has been on her six year old son, a child who adored his mother, who shared a deep loving bond with her. No child should ever have to experience such trauma, to lose their mother in such a cruel way in the early stages of his life. He misses her. He sometimes asks questions, which are not easy to answer. He is very fond of me and my parents, we try to give him love, support and a sense of normalcy, but we know nothing can ever replace the love of his mother.
“My sister was a remarkable woman - hardworking, ambitious and full of life. She was respected by all who knew her - colleagues, friends and everyone whose lives she touched. She had dreams and goals and a future she was building for her son, a future that was stolen from her and from us.
“This tragedy left has left permanent scars in our family. There's not a single day that passes without thinking of her, without feeling her absence. Birthdays, festivals, even ordinary days, all are tainted by grief. The pain doesn't fade - it lives with us.
“We hope that justice will be served - not just for our sake, but to honour her life and the person she was. Her memory deserves dignity, and her son deserves to grow up knowing that the truth was seen, heard and acknowledged.”
Last month, seven women and five men took five hours and seven minutes of deliberations across two days to reach their unanimous verdict that Regin Rajan murdered his wife only four months after their arrival in Ireland, at their home at Cardinal Court, Wilton, Cork, on July 14, 2023.
Today Detective Sergeant Michelle O’Leary outlined the background to the case.
The deceased had wanted a divorce. He would not let her go. At the murder scene he left on the bedside table the bloodstained murder weapon and wedding ring, as the body of the deceased lay on the bloodsoaked bed at her home, wrapped in a duvet.
He also left a note which was addressed to the couple’s then five-year-old child: “I love you so much. Please forgive me for what I did as your mum was having…(some writing that was never deciphered) and his name was Jay.”
He rang 999 and said, “I killed my wife.” He told gardaí: “She was cheating on me. She was having an affair and he lives in London. I just found out today. I saw the messages that were on her phone (details of passwords) and I could not tolerate it. It was very ugly messages.
“I just stabbed her with a knife in the throat, she was cheating on me, I could not tolerate that. I will take any sentence. I committed a crime. I could not take this. She was the love of my life.
“And this is the second time, sorry to say. I was in depression and family life was not good. I lost 15 kgs in the last two months. It was good until two months ago. When I knew she was chatting with someone, that is when I became depression.
“I did not do it deliberately. After seeing those messages I did that, sorry to say.”
The man with whom the late Ms Dinamani was texting for a few weeks before her death said that in fact they had never met each other. And on the website through which they met, she openly described herself as a mother of a five-year-old boy who was separated but not divorced.
Regin Rajan bought the carving knife at the local Tesco at Wilton Shopping Centre two days earlier, along with a bottle of Jameson whiskey.
Det Sgt O’Leary said Google searches by the accused for carving knife and prison in Ireland confirmed the premeditation of the murder, which was carried out with no hesitation – a single fatal slashing of the throat.
State pathologist Linda Mulligan said the main injury was a 14 cm horizontal cut across the neck of the deceased, gaping to 4 cm, and she concluded that death was due to blood loss, complicated by inhalation of blood due to an incised wound to the neck.
Despite his admissions on the day of the murder and even the reasons he gave for his brutal actions, he pleaded not guilty and described what happened as a tragic accident.
He made up an unbelievable story about his wife picking up the knife, him disarming her and her grabbing his hand and slashing her own throat.
It was so unbelievable that the jury did not believe it and found him guilty by a unanimous decision. As the deceased’s brother gave his evidence by video link today, the man who murdered her did what he did on many days during his trial, he sat writing copious notes.
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