Murdered Cork postman's partner heard voice outside house saying 'I'm going to kill you'

Postman Barry Daly’s partner woke to hear him outside the house shouting, ‘stop’, and she heard another voice shouting: “I’m going to kill you.” 

Katie O’Reilly was giving evidence on the fifth day of the murder trial at the Central Criminal Court sitting in Cork.

Ms O’Reilly was in bed when she heard those words from outside the house and she added that she heard “someone get a belt of something”.

As she lay in bed with one of her four children she said to herself: “I hope to God that is not Barry.” 

She also testified that: “The bang I heard was like someone getting a whack of something.” 

Ms Justice Siobhán Lankford said as the witness left the witness box:

“I want to sympathise with you and your family on your loss.” 

Siobhán Ryall testified that she got a phone call from her mother who neighbours the house where Barry Daly was found.

“My mum said they found Barry on the driveway, I think he is dead. On my way I rang the ambulance.” 

Siobhán Ryall cried as she testified: “He was lying lengthways to the gate. When I got out of the car I knelt next to him. There was a lot of blood. The first thing I noticed was this hole in his cheek. I listened for breath. I held his chest to see if I could feel his heartbeat.

“I heard some kind of choking. I put him into a recovery position. The ambulance lady (on the phone) said to put him on his back and do chest compressions. I did it until the first responders came. His bones cracked and I thought I was doing it wrong. The lady said just keep going.

“The first responders used a defibrillator. The ambulance crew came on the scene, they got there very quick.

“It will haunt me forever I could not bring him back. I tried.” 

Alex Deady and two juveniles, aged 16 and 17, who cannot be named for legal reasons, are on trial charged with murdering 44-year-old postman, Barry Daly at Rockview Terrace in Doneraile on October 12 2025. 

Alex Deady, 20, and the 17-year-old pleaded not guilty to murder but guilty to manslaughter. The 16-year-old simply pleaded not guilty to murder. The ages relate to the date of the incident.

Lisa Smith was outside Eily’s pub at closing time on the night the town was celebrating the local hurling team’s victory in the Junior B final. “Barry Daly came over to me and said, ‘I didn’t mean it’ (in relation to striking Rachel O’Kelly’s mouth). I said to Barry, “Go home, let them at it, they’re only kids.” 

“I went over to Alex and put my hands on his arms and said to calm down and go home and he said to get my hands off him. He had no top on.” 

“(Afterwards in the town), My niece in Perth rang and said Barry Daly is dead. I was shouting at Alex that he is dead. He said he's not dead. He put his head in his hands and cried.” 

Brian Sweeney testified that Seamus Hunter shouted at Alex and the 17-year-old, who is also on trial, called them ‘knackers’ and told them to go home.

“I saw Alex in the direction of Seamus Hunter. He (Alex) had a golfclub in his hand and made a swing but stopped before it made contact… It was an iron… Alex had no top on at that stage… He was shouting that his ‘missus’ had been hit (He understood this to refer to Alex’s girlfriend),” Mr Sweeney said.

Billy O’Brien said he took a golfclub off Alex and gave it to the publican, Ollie Sheehan, who put it out of harm’s way in the pub which had just been closed after the night.

Seamus Hunter said that after closing time he was trying to stop the fighting and arguing that was going on in the street and to calm things down.

“I saw two young fellas with golfclubs. I knew one was Alex Deady. I didn’t recognise the other fella. Alex had no shirt on. When I saw them I roared – excuse the language – ‘What are ye f***ing at, ye f***ing knackers’. I wanted to stop them. It was the first thing out of my mouth. They roared back, ‘don’t call us knackers’.

“I walked towards them, my hands in the air, let them know I wasn’t fighting. I said, ‘Lads, ye can’t go around with golfclubs, go home’. I got a slap on the nose, it was (17-year-old) with a head-butt… My nose was bleeding,” Mr Hunter said.

When he got home he thought they could have gone to Barry’s house and he (Mr Hunter) grabbed a baseball bat, left his house and crossed the road. 

He said he saw Alex and the 17-year-old and “a third lad I didn’t know.” He said he heard the 17-year-old say: “We have to get rid of these” and then he and Alex each threw a golfclub over a wall. 

He said the third youngfella stood back a bit and didn’t say or do anything.

Mr Hunter said they ran down in the direction of the town.

Earlier in the evidence, Joan O’Reilly, mother of Barry Daly’s partner, said he was a great father and they all looked forward to him coming into the house. 

Ms O’Reilly smiled as she recalled, saying to the deceased earlier that night, “Don’t be late tonight” and he joked back to her: “That’s OK, pet.” She said: “He was always black-guarding like that.” 

The trial before the judge and the jury of seven women and five men continues.