Brutal Christmas Day murderer of mother and two daughters in Co Kilkenny could soon be released - family

The brother of a woman, who was brutally murdered alongside her two young daughters on Christmas Day morning, has told of his family's mounting fear that the killer could be freed from jail in just over a year.

Sharon Whelan, 30, and daughters Zarah, seven, and two-year-old Nadia were killed by postman Brian Hennessy at their home in Windgap, Co. Kilkenny, in 2008.

Hennessy broke into the family's home, then raped and strangled the mother-of-two before setting a fire to cover his tracks - a blaze that killed the two small children.

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In the years since the barbaric triple murder, Sharon's brother John Whelan has campaigned tirelessly for longer sentences for serious offenders, such as in the UK where whole life tariffs are handed out in court without the possibility of parole.

The 54-year-old father-of-three, who is chairman of crime victims' group SAVE [Sentencing and Victim Equality], said the "lenient" system here in Ireland means he and his family are facing the nightmare scenario of Hennessy being released as early as March 2026.

Hennessy is now in his 15th year behind bars at Dublin's Arbour Hill, having been handed three 'concurrent' life sentences - which effectively means he serves just one.

As a lifer, he was eligible to apply for parole after 12 years behind bars, and every subsequent two years after that - meaning he could be released in just 15 month's time when his next parole hearing is due.

Mr. Whelan said: "We just don't know when Hennessy will be freed. He was denied parole at the last hearing back in March this year, but the hearings take place every two years. So he could be released at any time.

"It means we, the family members of the victims, are stuck in a loop and unable to move on and find any peace, because every couple of years we get dragged back into the system and it's traumatising.

"But we have to make our case to make sure he doesn't get out. If we don't engage with the Parole Board, and God forbid he's released, then we'd have to live with that."

Mr. Whelan, who works as a counsellor and psychotherapist, continued: "We need a tariff system like in the UK, where a life sentence means exactly that, and you can only apply for parole after the sentence has been served. We need to keep the pressure on the new government next year to make sure this happens.

"In our case, Hennessy successfully appealed for the sentences to run concurrently, so it's like the lives of my sister's two little girls don't matter in the eyes of the law.

"He should be serving three back-to-back life sentences with no chance of parole. But unfortunately the criminal justice system here still continues to punish the victims' families more than the perpetrators."

Looking ahead to Christmas and the upcoming anniversary of the murders, he added: "It's a very tough time of year, but I do my best to focus on the good things in my life, and to be grateful for those. But we can't ever forget what happened. It's always there, and it always will be there."

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