Two convicted murderers who went AWOL while on temporary jail release to “start a new life” in the Republic have been sentenced to six months in prison.
Stephen Henry Michel McParland (55), c/o of Maghaberry Prison and Alison Michelle McDonagh (50), with an address at Hydebank Wood women’s prison, appeared at Belfast Crown Court on Friday.
The pair pleaded guilty to being unlawfully at large from the prison estate on dates between January 21 and January 27, 2023.
The court heard McParland was jailed for life in 1997 and told he would spend a minimum of 16 years behind bars before being eligible to apply to the Parole Commissioners for release.
The conviction related to the murder of east Belfast man Gary Alexander McKimm following a row over £20.
McDonagh was jailed for life and handed a minimum tariff of 12 years in 2006 for the murder of drinking friend George McDowell at a flat in the Rathcoole estate in Newtownabbey.
Prosecution barrister Natalie Pinkerton told the court on Friday that both defendants had been out on temporary release from prison on January 21, 2023, but failed to return.
A cross-border police manhunt was launched after they were spotted on CCTV at a Belfast train station with a large number of bags and “boarded a train to Dublin’'.
“However, on January 26, 2023 they were returning to the jurisdiction on a train from Dublin to Belfast and were apprehended in Newry,’’ said Ms Pinkerton.
“They have been back in custody since then and that period in custody would not be taken into account as a result of any sentence imposed today.”
Asked by Judge Mark Reel “what was this all about?’’, defence barrister Stephen Toal for McParland described it as a “very, very strange case’' as his client was “on the cusp of early release”.
“At three previous parole hearings the word ‘sabotage’ was used by various panels who believed that he had become institutionalised (in prison),” he said.
“Each time he was just about to be released he did something minor that set back his whole release.
“So in this particular case it is very difficult to work out what he was doing other than that.
“They went to Dublin, they met the Gards (Gardai), an unconventional extradition took place were the Gards accompanied them on the train to Newry where they voluntarily got off, met the PSNI and were arrested.’’
Asked by the judge “what the large amount of luggage was about?’’, Mr Toal replied: “They had plans to start a new life together in the Republic of Ireland.
“He deeply regrets it. But it wasn’t going to last too long.
“They had no recourse to funds and there were no state benefits available to them.
“It was always going to end up the way it ended.
“He will have to earn the trust of the prison authorities again and the Parole Commissioners won’t release him immediately.’’
Defence barrister Patrick McTaggart said McDonagh was approaching almost 20 years in prison and “seven years post-tariff’'.
“She was nine days shy of another Parole Commissioner’s release when she went unlawfully at large and to say it was self-sabotage is pretty obvious,’’ said Mr McTaggart.
Passing the six-month sentence, Judge Reel said: “Release on licence from the prison estate is an important feature of the operation of the prison system.
“Prisoners who are released in such a fashion are released on trust and when that trust is breached by a prisoner there is an important public interest in ensuring that those who breach the terms of the release are appropriately punished.’’