'Failed to convict a bloody murderer' The Tánaiste speaks on the murder case of du Plantier

Tánaiste Micheál Martin has question why Sophie du Plantier case was put before a jury. Sophie Tuscan du Plantier was murdered, at age 39 outside her holiday home in West Cork in 1996.

A famous story in Ireland and was the subject of a popular Netflix documentary, Sophie: A Murder in West Cork which heavily featured the main suspect of the murder, Ian Bailey. The Manchester born man who lived in West Cork died in January this year at 66 years old.

Micheál Martin described the man as a "violent man who had beaten his partner so badly she had to attend hospital."

Bailey was convicted of the murder by French court in May 2019, in which the judge sentenced him to 25 years.

The Tánaiste said "The simple fact is, we failed in our duty to find and convict a bloody murderer, and our system blocked alternative routes when others were not willing to accept our failures."

 Ian Bailey was arrested by the Gardaí in 1997 and 1998 but was never prosecuted in Ireland.

"When you look at the details of this case and the scale of the evidence, it is very, very hard to understand why this evidence was not put before a jury" said Mr Martin.

He also said "The fact that we have absolute independence in our judicial system, that no external pressure can be applied on independent prosecutors and judges is a great strength which we should value."

Finally adding to his comments "We need to learn from our failure to deliver justice for Sophie and Tuscan du Plantier."

“And at the same time, we can admit that this system failed Sophie Toscan du Plantier."