'It was beyond cruel and evil': Cork man poured boiling water on wife and hit her over the head with claw-hammer

A 63-year-old woman asleep in her own home said today it was beyond evil to be attacked by her husband who poured boiling water over her and struck her head with a claw-hammer.

64-year-old Noel Twomey of 18 Carbery Grove, Knocknaheeny, Cork, faced sentencing today at Cork Circuit Criminal Court where Detective Garda Mick Dolan described the background to the extremely violent attack and read the impact statement on behalf of the victim.

“My name is Jackie Twomey and on the 15th January 2024 my life changed forever. That night when I was in bed asleep my husband of 40 years came to my bedroom and brutally assaulted me. He had boiling water and a claw hammer with him and attacked me with both. 

"It was beyond cruel and evil what he did to me. He poured the boiling water on me and hit me a number of times over the head with the hammer. He didn't seem to care about the damage he was doing to me. I thought I was going to die, I remember the pain and screaming. I couldn't believe what was happening. I was in CUH for six days and needed a lot of follow up care. That was the physical side. 

"The psychological trauma is worse. I don't think I will ever be the same person as I was before that night, I fear going to bed and I fear just sleeping. The nightmares return every night, the pain and memories are there all the time but worse at night. It’s hard to put in words how my life has changed and the anxiety and terror that have become part of my life. I should have been safe asleep in my own bed.

“I have a very supportive family and friends who are 100% behind me. I hope I get peace someday and can be happy but that possibility seems far away. I need that evil man to be gone for good. I want to thank the gardaí, the paramedics, the staff at the CUH and my own doctor. I never thought I would be in a courtroom reading a victim impact statement. I never thought my life would change so much or that I would be living with ongoing physical and psychological pain. I could write about what the days were like after the attack trying to recover but it’s still the fear inside me now that's taking over at night. I do hope I get peace sometime in the future.” 

Seamus Roche defence senior counsel said the accused had written a letter of apology to his wife.

He said that he would prefer to have sentencing put back for a psychiatric report because he said the attack was extraordinary and clearly had a psychiatric overlay.

Emmet Boyle prosecution barrister said the DPP was of the view that it was at the most serious level necessitating a pre-mitigation sentence of 10 to 15 years because of factors including the premeditation involved, the fact that the victim was asleep and defenceless in her own home and the ferocity of the assaults involving boiling water and a claw hammer.

Judge Dermot Sheehan agreed to adjourn sentencing for the psychiatric report until June 26 at Cork Circuit Criminal Court.

Det Garda Dolan said the accused man was seen near his home soaked in blood and carrying a bloodstained hammer at 5am on Monday January 15 at Bakers Road, Gurranabraher, Cork. Mr Roche suggested that the accused actually flagged down a garda car.

The detective said that after being out socialising with family members the injured party returned home and went to bed. Noel Twomey was at home that night and awake when his wife returned, and he watched her on CCTV as she approached the house.

He made the conscious decision to boil a pot of water and retrieve a claw hammer from the tool box after she had gone to sleep in bed.

“When the water was boiling he took the pot and the hammer and paced the flat for some time before entering the bedroom. He proceeded to pour the boiling water on his wife before striking her over the head with the hammer a number of times.

“He expressed surprise that she was able to jump up and leave the property.”