Life sentence for Daniel Hourigan after murder of Cork man Michael Foley

A judge has said the hospitality and kindness shown by a Cork man who gave a young man a roof over his head was repaid with "cruel" savagery as his killer was sentenced to life imprisonment.

Daniel Hourigan, 33, originally from Farranree in Cork city, received the mandatory life sentence on Thursday after being convicted of the murder of 61-year-old Michael Foley on February 1, 2024, at Mr Foley's home in Annville, Barrett's Place, Macroom.

In a victim impact statement, one of Mr Foley's four daughters, Caroline Foley, said: “He taught us kindness. He taught us compassion. He believed that everyone deserved another chance. If someone was struggling, he never looked the other way. He opened his heart and his home to people when others wouldn't. That was the man he was.

“The deepest pain we carry is knowing that his kindness was repaid with betrayal. You (murderer, Daniel Hourigan) accepted his generosity. You accepted his trust.

"You accepted the roof he gave you over your head. Then you repaid the man who helped you in the most unimaginable way possible. That betrayal has left wounds that will never heal.” 

 'A savage attack'

Ms Justice Siobhán Lankford said Mr Foley had provided a safe haven for Hourigan while he was trying to come off heroin, allowing him to stay at his home in Macroom for several weeks before the murder.

“His hospitality and kindness was repaid cruelly with a savage death – eleven stab wounds, 19 incised wounds and 34 blunt force wounds. It was by any reckoning a savage attack.

“One of the most troubling aspects of this case was that when he was leaving… (he knew Mr Foley was alive). But no effort was made to make any phone call or to seek any assistance for Michael Foley,” Ms Justice Lankford said.

Hourigan's former girlfriend, Linda O'Flynn, originally from Hollyhill in Cork city, was previously sentenced to seven years' imprisonment for attempting to cover up the murder.

Speaking outside the Central Criminal Court in Cork, Caroline Foley said: “Today's sentence brings a sense of justice to our family. Nothing will ever bring back Dad, but we are grateful that those responsible have been held accountable.

"We would like to thank everyone who supported us throughout the long and difficult process.”