A man who tried to hire a hitman to kill a couple who were exchanging intimate online messages with his now ex-wife has been jailed for four-and-a-half years by the Central Criminal Court.
Ms Justice Biggs said that Kennedy "hatched the plan" to kill his wife's online friends with a man he knew to be "unhinged" and who had previous convictions. He provided personal details of the two women and accessed his wife's Facebook page in pursuit of his plan. Ms Justice Biggs added: "This is not a plan that is spontaneous, it is initiated by him and he takes time to think about it and having done so he decides to pursue it. It is not a spontaneous plan borne out of rage or bravado, it is planned and meant to be executed."
Ms Justice Biggs added: "I do not think that the fact his wife was having an online affair is an excuse for engaging in this grotesque plan. There is no difference to all manner of people in this country who suffer from pain and grief and difficult life circumstances. But I do acknowledge he has been a good father in difficult circumstances."
Kennedy pleaded guilty to the same offence relating to Ms Poirier's partner, Clara Houdebrumette. Both women live in Canada. The neighbour told gardaí that he did not believe that 'AL' had the capacity to carry out the threat and that Kennedy was being treated like a "gilly" and a "suck" and that AL was "trying to suck every penny" out of Kennedy.
AL later approached Kennedy's wife at home, saying the defendant wanted a 10K "hit" and demanding that she come up with €1.5K inside 20 minutes and that she could pay off the remaining €500 in a week's time. Det Sgt O'Malley told Mr Dwyer that Kennedy had already gotten on a ferry to England after borrowing money from neighbours to pay €8K to AL.
Kennedy told gardaí that he conspired to have the couple killed but never discussed the manner of the killing, later backing out and telling AL to keep the money and that the job no longer needed to be done. Defending barrister Dominic McGinn SC said Kennedy was the sole carer for his three children and that his ex-wife was in a wheelchair. Mr McGinn said AL did not have the capability to carry out his threat to the couple and that the two were never in danger.