Paul F. Murphy / Facebook
CV NEWS FEED // A 17-year-old this week pleaded guilty to attempted murder of a Catholic military chaplain, whom the assailant attacked with a knife in August 2024 outside of an Irish army barracks, according to recent reports.
CatholicVote reported that on Aug. 15, 2024, Father Paul Murphy was sitting in his car outside the barracks in Galway when the suspect approached him. After Fr. Murphy reportedly rolled his window down, the assailant attacked Fr. Murphy with a knife, stabbing him. Fr. Murphy, who sustained several stab wounds, was able to escape, and the assailant was subsequently arrested. Fr. Murphy sustained serious but non-life-threatening injuries from the attack. The suspect, who was 16 at the time of the attack, has not been publicly identified due to his age.
During a Feb. 10 arraignment, the teenager pleaded guilty to attempted murder of the priest, according to the Irish Times. High Court Judge Paul McDermott requested a probation report and adjourned the hearing, the Times reported. Next month, officials will set a sentencing hearing date for the teenager. Fr. Murphy is set to be invited to make a victim impact statement to the court, according to the Times.
According to an Aug. 17, 2024, Euractiv report, the Irish police said in a statement that they would be investigating whether the attack on Fr. Murphy “had a terrorism motivation” but noted that they did not view the attack as “part of a wider conspiracy.”
At the time of publication, CatholicVote was unable to determine whether there are any updates on the investigation.
