Burglar who murdered "well respected" Sligo retiree fails in conviction appeal

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Simon McGinley, aged 32 from Connaughton Road Car Park in Sligo, has had his appeals against conviction and sentence dismissed by the Court of Appeal. McGinley was convicted of the murder of Eugene Gillespie, a 67-year-old retired telecoms broker, who died following an assault at his home on Old Market Street on 19 September 2012. McGinley had admitted killing Mr Gillespie but denied the charge was murder. A jury found him guilty of murder in April 2014, and he received a mandatory life sentence along with concurrent sentences for false imprisonment and burglary. The three-judge court, presided over by Mr Justice George Birmingham, found no grounds of substance in McGinley's appeals. The court noted the seriousness of the offences and McGinley's significant criminal history of 21 previous convictions. McGinley was returned to prison to continue serving his sentences.

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