Murder of Tina Satchwell
Tina Satchwell | |
|---|---|
| Born | Tina Dingivan 30 November 1972 |
| Disappeared | 20 March 2017 (aged 44) Cork, Ireland |
| Status | Deceased |
| Body discovered | 12 October 2023 |
| Nationality | Irish |
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)[1] |
Tina Satchwell (née Dingivan; born 30 November 1972[2]) was an Irish woman who went missing under suspicious circumstances on 20 March 2017. Her remains were found hidden in her home in October 2023. Her husband, Richard Satchwell, a truck driver, was arrested and charged with her murder.[3][4][5]
Background
[edit]Satchwell was from St Bernard's Place in Fermoy, County Cork. In the 1980s she moved to Leicester, England, to live with her grandmother. There she met Richard Satchwell and in 1990 the couple were married in Oldham. They moved back to Ireland, settling in Fermoy. In December 2002, Richard Satchwell was sentenced to a month in prison after being found guilty of social welfare fraud.[6]In 2016, they moved to Grattan Street in the seaside town of Youghal where they lived with their two dogs.[7][3][4][8][9][1][10]
Disappearance
[edit]Satchwell disappeared from her home on 20 March 2017. She was last seen in public at a car boot sale with her husband in the town of Carrigtwohill on 19 March 2017. Richard was the last person to see her, reportedly at 10 am on 20 March 2017. He stated that Tina asked him to go to an Aldi store in Dungarvan to buy fish, and that she was gone by the time he returned around noon. He reported her missing on 24 March 2017. She was aged 44 at the time of her disappearance.[4][11]
Richard stated that his wife had been depressed and was troubled by family disputes. He believed that she had chosen to leave "to get her head straight". He later suggested that she may have gone to live with family in the United Kingdom with the help of a third party; however, Tina's family have rejected this idea. Gardaí (Irish police) have stated that Tina did not pass through any Irish or UK port or airport and that they believe she did not leave Ireland.[11][10] She did not possess a passport and did not take any identification with her. Richard stated that he believed she had taken €26,000 in cash, the proceeds of the sale of a house. Two suitcases were missing from the house. Her phone has not been used, and her bank account has not been accessed since the day of her disappearance.[3][4][2][12]
In June 2017, Richard appeared alongside Tina's aunt, Margaret Maher, on the RTÉ show Crimecall to make a public appeal for information.[8] The following month, in response to media attention and social media speculation, he stated that he would be willing to take a lie detector test. He later declined to take a test during an interview on Cork's Red FM.[13][14][12][11] In January 2018, RTÉ aired a Prime Time special programme on Tina's disappearance, featuring Richard, Tina's cousin Sarah Howard, and gardaí involved in the case.[9][15] In 2018, Richard appeared on The Ray D'Arcy Show to discuss Tina's disappearance.[11]
In March 2018, an Garda Síochána carried out a search in Mitchel's Wood near Castlemartyr in County Cork, 20 minutes from Youghal. The operation was based on a tip from a member of the public who claimed to have seen someone leave the woods on the night of Satchwell's disappearance. A no-fly zone was established over the area. Despite an extensive search, which included the use of detection dogs, no trace of Satchwell was found.[16][2][17][18][19] Searches were also carried out in scrubland and off the quays in Youghal, but nothing was discovered.[11] Gardaí have also engaged with Interpol.[1]
Murder investigation
[edit]In July 2023, a team of detectives from Cork began reviewing witness statements previously provided by a person of interest and found major discrepancies between what he had stated and what Garda inquiries had subsequently ascertained. The suspect’s mobile phone activity and email records in the days and weeks following Ms Satchwell’s disappearance were likewise analyzed in detail.[20] Gardai subsequently discovered that while the suspect had claimed he was not in County Cork on the day Ms Satchwell vanished, mobile device forensics proved this was untrue.[21] While reviewing Ms Satchwell’s case file, investigating officers also noticed a new brick wall had been built to block off the underside of a stairwell when comparing pictures of the house at Grattan Street taken before and after her disappearance.[22] In early October 2023, utility workers attempting to clear a nearby blocked drain found suspicious material, which was then handed over to Gardai.[23]On 10 October 2023, Satchwell's disappearance was upgraded to a murder investigation.[22]
A man in his 50s was arrested on suspicion of murder and taken to a Garda station in Cork for questioning. A Garda team was brought in to search a premises in Youghal, County Cork.[24][25][26] On 11 October 2023, the suspect was released without charge.[27][28] The suspect was re-arrested the next day following the discovery of human remains at Satchwell's home.[29][30][31]
A cadaver dog had indicated the stairwell area to Gardai, who after knocking down the wall and digging down through a meter of concrete discovered the dead body of a woman wrapped in black plastic sheets.[22] On 13 October 2023, the remains were identified through dental records and confirmed to be those of Tina Satchwell.[32] Later that day, Richard Satchwell, Tina's husband, was charged with her murder. When arrested, he stated "guilty or not guilty - guilty".[5]
On 14 October 2023, Richard Satchwell appeared before Cashel District Court.[5] He was remanded to Limerick Prison. On 3rd November 2023, he was denied bail as Judge Siobhan Lankford considered him to be a flight risk.[33] His trial for the murder of Tina Satchwell is scheduled for April 2025 in the Central Criminal Court.[34]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ a b c "Gardaí 'continue to investigate and appeal for information' in tracing whereabouts of Tina Satchwell five years on". echo live. 19 March 2022.
- ^ a b c Hand, John (1 December 2021). "Missing Tina Satchwell's heartbroken sister pays tribute on her birthday". Irish Mirror.
- ^ a b c Dunphy, Liz (20 March 2022). "'You don't just vanish off the face of the earth': Family of Tina Satchwell mark fifth anniversary". Irish Examiner.
- ^ a b c d "Family 'confused' at husband's claims about wife now missing four months". independent. 8 July 2017.
- ^ a b c "Richard Satchwell charged with murder of his wife Tina". Independent.ie. 14 October 2023.
- ^ "'I would sooner be there than where I am now' - Richard Satchwell on his month in prison". Irish Independent. 13 March 2018. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
- ^ "Tina Satchwell case: A timeline of the investigation into her disappearance". The Irish Times.
- ^ a b Hennessy, Michelle (26 June 2017). "'Tina, come home': Husband of missing woman makes emotional appeal". TheJournal.ie.
- ^ a b "Prime Time investigates the disappearance of Tina Satchwell". The Avondhu Newspaper. 25 January 2018.
- ^ a b Prendeville, Kathy (14 January 2021). "Key events & new details 4 years after Tina Satchwell's mysterious disappearance". RSVP Live.
- ^ a b c d e "Tina Satchwell Mystery: How Does A Wife And Sister Vanish Into Thin Air?". Extra.ie. 5 January 2019.
- ^ a b "'Two suitcases found' in Tina Satchwell missing-person probe". Irish Examiner. 1 August 2017.
- ^ Murray, Sean (13 July 2017). "Husband of missing Cork woman says he'd be willing to take a lie detector test". TheJournal.ie.
- ^ "Missing Cork woman's spouse: I'll take a lie detector test". echo live. 14 July 2017.
- ^ "Prime Time - Tina Satchwell, Cyber Abuse". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. 25 January 2018.
- ^ MacNamee, Garreth (6 March 2018). "Detailed information from 'key witness' sparks 40-acre hunt for missing Tina Satchwell". TheJournal.ie.
- ^ Sheehy, Paschal (4 March 2018). "Search operation in Cork for missing Tina Satchwell". Raidió Teilifís Éireann.
- ^ Lally, Conor; McMahon, Aine. "Gardaí secure 'no-fly zone' over Tina Satchwell search site". The Irish Times.
- ^ "Castlemartyr search for Tina Satchwell ends". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. 16 March 2018.
- ^ "Tina Satchwell case: Gardaí reviewing file became suspicious over inaccuracies in witness statements". Irish imes. 12 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
- ^ "Tina Satchwell case: Suspect was in different place than where he said at time of disappearance, phone records show". Irish Times. 13 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
- ^ a b c "Tina Satchwell case: Human remains found at house in Youghal confirmed to be those of missing woman". Irish Times. 13 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
- ^ "Tina Satchwell suspect must be charged or released by 8pm as her sister pays tribute". Sunday World. 13 October 2023. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
- ^ Sheehy, Paschal (10 October 2023). "Man, 50s, arrested over murder of Tina Satchwell".
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ O'Connor, Diarmuid Pepper & Niall (11 October 2023). "Technical examination of Tina Satchwell's home begins as man continues to be held in custody". TheJournal.ie.
- ^ "Tina Satchwell disappearance: Gardaí search under floors of property as man questioned over her murder". Independent.ie. 11 October 2023.
- ^ O'Connor, Diarmuid Pepper & Niall (11 October 2023). "Man (50s) arrested in Tina Satchwell murder investigation is released without charge". TheJournal.ie.
- ^ "Tina Satchwell disappearance: Man questioned by gardai on suspicion of murder released without charge". Independent.ie. 11 October 2023.
- ^ "Tina Satchwell case: Man (50s) rearrested as remains found at Cork house after Garda search". The Irish Times. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
- ^ "Man (50s) arrested as suspected human remains found at home of Tina Satchwell". Independent.ie. 12 October 2023.
- ^ Healy, Paul (12 October 2023). "Tina Satchwell: major breakthrough as Gardaí find human remains at her home". Irish Mirror.
- ^ O'Connor, Niall (13 October 2023). "Dental records confirm Tina Satchwell's remains, suspect remains under questioning". TheJournal.ie.
- ^ "Murder accused Richard Satchwell denied bail after flight risk concerns raised". The Irish Times.
- ^ O'Riordan, Alison (1 May 2024). "Richard Satchwell to go on trial in April 2025 over Tina Satchwell murder charge". TheJournal.ie.