Smiling police killer marries English pen pal in prison ceremony
The killer of the first officer to be murdered since the formation of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has married his English fiancée in prison.
The killer of the first officer to be murdered since the formation of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) has married his English fiancée in prison.
The behind-bars ceremony saw dissident republican Brendan McConville, 45, exchange vows with pen pal Siobhan Monaghan.
McConville is serving 25 years for his part in the 2009 murder of Police Constable Stephen Carroll who was shot dead after terrorists lured police to a call out in Northern Ireland.
Around ten guests including McConville`s accomplice John Paul Wootton are believed to have attended the “high level of security” nuptials inside Maghaberry prison.
Guests were on a strict time limit and the couple would have had two hours maximum together after the brief ceremony.
The bride changed her surname on Facebook after the wedding, announcing the marriage alongside a picture of the newly-married couple.
There were a number of `congratulations` on social media the first among them was Brian Shivers who was acquitted after retrial three years ago of the murder of two soldiers and six attempted murders at Massereene barracks in 2009.
The pair struck up a romance after 49-year-old Siobhan began writing letters to the Continuity IRA killer from her home in Oxford, England.
She has made regular trips to Northern Ireland to visit him in the high security prison`s Roe 4 dissident wing, posting images of the pair taken in the visiting area of the Lisburn jail on to social media.
On Sunday (November 20), the single mum, who regularly speaks at rallies calling for her fiancées release, was inundated with well-wishes after posting her pre-wedding excitement to Twitter. She wrote: “I`m getting married in the morning. Ding dong the bells are going to chime”.
McConville, a former Sinn Fein councillor, lay in wait when PC Carroll responded to a complaint that a brick had been thrown through the window of a house on the Lismore manor estate in Craigavon on March 9, 2009.
Armed with an AK-47 assault rifle, he shot the officer in the head when he came into range after parking his car. The Continuity IRA later claimed responsibility for the shooting.
PC Carroll, 48, from Banbridge, County Down, was the first officer to be killed in Northern Ireland since the formation of the PSNI. He had served in the force for more than 24 years at the time of his murder.
Just last week, his heartbroken widow spoke about her joy at finding love again, seven years on from her devastating loss. Kate Carroll talked publicly for the first time about her new found friendship with Derek Egerton, who offered support to her in the years after her husband`s death.
She said she had not been looking for a partner, and although she is happy now, she emphasised “Steve will always live on in my heart”.