What happened to Olivia Dunlea?
The horrific murder of a Cork mother of three in 2013 is to be the subject of the final episode in a new three-part Irish true crime documentary series.
Airing on 5 March as part of TG4’s ‘Marú Inár Measc’, episode three looks at the murder of 36 year old Olivia Dunlea whose life was taken in Passage West on the 17 February 2013 by her then boyfriend of just eight weeks, Darren Murphy.
Ms Dunlea, a playschool teacher and local volunteer, was originally from Ballintemple in Cork city.
She was the eldest of three daughters and had a very close relationship with her sisters, so much so that her sister, Anne, moved to the same estate in Passage West.
On 16 February 2013, Ms Dunlea had collected Anne, who had just given birth to a new baby, from the hospital and brought her home. She was due to go out that night with Darren Murphy to the Rochestown Inn, a local bar, and said to Anne that she would be back the following morning to help with the baby.
Following a night of socialising, Ms Dunlea and Mr Murphy took a taxi back to Ms Dunlea’s house at around 1am. Not long after that, neighbours reported a fire at the address. Mr Murphy had stabbed Ms Dunlea six times as she lay in bed and while she was still alive, he set fire to her duvet and another fire in the kitchen before fleeing the scene.
Although Mr Murphy presented a different version of events, he was soon arrested. However, it took Ms Dunlea’s family seven years to get justice for her murder. Mr Murphy’s defence team leaned on the defence of provocation, claiming Ms Dunlea had provoked him into killing her to seek the lesser sentencing of manslaughter.
After three trials and two appeal hearings, Mr Murphy was sentenced to life imprisonment.
Now 12 years on, Mr Murphy is entitled to apply for parole and the Dunlea family feel that they will have to go through it all again.
The series’ third episode features interviews with Ms Dunlea’s family, including her daughter Megan who speaks for the first time of the effect her mother’s murder has had on her and her brothers’ lives.
‘Marú Inár Measc’ is a three-part true crime documentary series by Midas Productions for TG4 which shines a light on the effect that fatal crimes have on society, local communities, and on the victims’ families.
As well as the series, Midas Productions and TG4 have produced a podcast of the same name which runs alongside the TV edition and explores the societal impact of each case and is available to listen to across all the major podcast platforms.