Tag: black widow

30 – Sharon Collins: Lying Eyes, Hitman4Hire, & attempted murder

On By mensreapod@gmail.comIn Black Widow, Controversial Case, Intimate Partner Violence, Irish Crime, Mental Health, murder, Women Who Kill

In 2006, Sharon Collins decided that what she had wasn’t enough. She was a divorced mother of two, living with a long term partner, PJ Howard, who also had two sons. He also owned a multi-million euro property business, which he wanted to pass to his sons. So much so that he wouldn’t marry Sharon in order to ensure this. But despite the lavish lifestyle Sharon lived – nice houses, a penthouse apartment in Spain, a boat, basically anything she wanted – Sharon wanted more.

So, she got on her computer and between searches for weight loss and diet tips, she looked for a hitman. And she found one. 

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10 – Catherine Nevin: The Black Widow (Part 2)

On By mensreapod@gmail.comIn Black Widow, Domestic Violence, Intimate Partner Violence, IRA/Paramilitary links, Irish Crime, murder, Women Who Kill

In the second and final instalment of the Black Widow story, the Gardai ramp up their investigation into her, and she is finally charged with the murder of her husband, and conspiracy to commit murder. The trial took place in 2000, and lasted a whopping 62 days. After three attempts to start, it finally got under way and Willie McClean, Gerry Heapes and John Jones recounted their tales to the jury.

We also examine the aftermath of the whole sorry affair, including Justice O’Buachalla coming under scrutiny in the Murphy Inquiry, and the various appeals that Catherine brought before the courts, before finally discussing the subject that was closest to Catherine’s heart: money.

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10 – Catherine Nevin: The Black Widow (Part 1)

On By mensreapod@gmail.comIn Black Widow, Domestic Violence, Intimate Partner Violence, IRA/Paramilitary links, Irish Crime, murder, Women Who Kill

The weekend of St Patrick’s Day, 1996, Tom Nevin was found lying dead from a gunshot wound to the chest in the kitchen of his pub, Jack White’s in the popular seaside town of Brittas Bay, Co Wicklow.  His wife, Catherine, had sounded the alarm and when the Gardai arrived they found her bound by the wrists. She said that intruders had entered the pub, looking for jewellery.  But something wasn’t quite right, the scene seemed staged, and soon the Gardai began unravelling a web of deceit constructed carefully over nearly 10 years of a plan to have Tom Nevin killed. All eyes now turned to Catherine. Was she really a grieving widow? Or a Black Widow who had her husband killed to get control of their assets?

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