Michaela McAreavey trial accused 'not guilty'

Tabnabs

Two men have been found not guilty of murdering newlywed Michaela McAreavey in her honeymoon suite in Mauritius.

The 27-year-old teacher from Northern Ireland was killed in January 2011.

She was the daughter of one of Ireland's best known sports figures, Mickey Harte, manager of the Tyrone gaelic football team.

Avinash Treebhoowoon, 32, and Sandip Moneea, 43, both worked at the hotel where Mrs McAreavey was killed.

The trial at the Supreme Court in Mauritius lasted more than seven weeks. It was initially expected to last two weeks but turned into one of the longest trials in Mauritian legal history.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-18703365

A terrible time for the families involved.

Kwack

Genuinely shocked by this! The family have been through enough as it was and now this??

hondasam

I'm not surprised tbh considering all that has gone on during the trial. The family must be devastated with the outcome.

Phoenix Park

Oh fck.

FatherLen

sad end to a horrific story.

johngalway

Jesus Christ, after all they've been through.

seamus

I'm not really surprised given how much of a shambles the investigation was.

Very tough for her family, no doubt. At the same time I may have felt a little bit disappointed in the Mauritian justice system if they were found guilty after that farcical trial. It's hard to call.

davet82

i thought it was heading in this direction so not surprised, the police really fcuked it up

what now for the McAreaveys and justice... idk

feel terrible for them right now

paddyh117

Sad, and probably wrong, but hardly surprising. Some of the stories have made it sound like "Carry on Courtroom"

Sad for the families

Ghandee

Disgraceful.

I hope the accused, defence, and judge and jury sleep soundly tonight.

Justice me hole.

flanzer

That's Mauritius off 'my places to visit'.

The whole judicial system seemed to be modelled on the Irish one

up for anything

It's sad for her family that they have no closure from the trial but that is better than two innocent men being jailed for the crime. I haven't really followed the trial although I know it seemed to be a complete travesty. Have they been found not guilty through lack of evidence or because they proved that they weren't involved?

The fact that they didn't find DNA from the two men on her body begs the question did they find any strange DNA on Michaela's body. Surely whoever did it must have left some trace evidence although I supposed it could have been washed away in the bath.

hondasam

seamus wrote: »

I'm not really surprised given how much of a shambles the investigation was.

Very tough for her family, no doubt. At the same time I may have felt a little bit disappointed in the Mauritian justice system if they were found guilty after that farcical trial. It's hard to call.

Same here I'm not sure they had the right guys tbh. It was all about saving the reputation of the hotel and the country.

davet82

should be a boycott of these islands until the McAreaveys get justice, either get the right people or do their jobs!

Nozebleed

so who did it?

Piste

To be honest, it would be better that the family be devastated and two innocent men walk free than the family sleep soundly and two innocent men serve a prison sentence. (This is of course based on accepting the "not guilty" verdict was the correct one).

fasttalkerchat

Regardless of innocent or guilty its clear that there will never be justice.
The cop who said "you are young, you will find another wife" should be sacked. The circus act legal team should face charges for disrupting the trial.

seamus

hondasam wrote: »

Same here I'm not sure they had the right guys tbh. It was all about saving the reputation of the hotel and the country.

No, I wasn't convinced that the evidence presented was sufficient to claim that both men were involved. I don't think I would have been convinced to give a guilty verdict either. I say that of course based only on media reports of the trial.

What often happens in these things is that other information starts surfacing which couldn't be used as evidence and which couldn't be reported on during the trial. Maybe it can be pieced together a bit better.

danniemcq

why is everyone jumping to the same conclusion (or nearly everyone)

they were found NOT guilty and say what you want about police out there but when an Oxfordshire-based forensic scientist says no DNA was found then you gotta admit that the evidence is showing innocent.

Oxfordshire-based forensic scientist Susan Woodroffe said no DNA from either of the accused was found in the McAreaveys' hotel room or on Michaela's body.

and yes its terrible for the Harte family not to have closure but think of those on trial and their families and their loved ones too.

If you were being dragged through the mud suspected of an horrific crime that you didn't commit then your family and loved ones are affected too.

Innocent until proven guilty remember and they were found NOT guilty.

up for anything

davet82 wrote: »

should be a boycott of these islands until the McAreaveys get justice, either get the right people or do their jobs!

I'd say there are a lot of people in Ireland waiting for justice from the Irish legal system or people who will never get it. Do we boycott Ireland till they get it?

europa11

Devastating news for the family and in particular John McAreavey, who has been put through this hell again. To think the shameful and disgusting behavoiur of the defence team actually worked on the Jury.

Apart from tinned fish and some fruit that I can recall coming from Mauritius, I'll be making sure none of my future purchases come from that island.

As for holidays there! You'd want to be crazy after this to go near the place.

hondasam

seamus wrote: »

No, I wasn't convinced that the evidence presented was sufficient to claim that both men were involved. I don't think I would have been convinced to give a guilty verdict either. I say that of course based only on media reports of the trial.

What often happens in these things is that other information starts surfacing which couldn't be used as evidence and which couldn't be reported on during the trial. Maybe it can be pieced together a bit better.

I have to admit in the beginning I did suspect her husband. There should have been some DNA from the killer. What happens now?

danniemcq

davet82 wrote: »

should be a boycott of these islands until the McAreaveys get justice, either get the right people or do their jobs!

same with the states then, and the UK, and i'm sure many other countries too. also you probably couldn't go to a county in Ireland where there is an unsolved murder.

you can't blame an entire nation for the horrors commited by of a couple of people

WallyGUFC

flanzer wrote: »

That's Mauritius off 'my places to visit'.

The whole judicial system seemed to be modelled on the Irish one

Off your places to visit list? What a load of s**t. Does that mean nobody should visit Ireland because of how the bankers got away with everything? FFS.

Terrible for the family alright but the trial was a farce. That defence lawyer certainly did his job anyway...

leahyl

An utter disgrace:mad:

Her poor poor husband and family:( especially her husband - what he has gone through the last year and a half.

paddyh117

danniemcq wrote: »

why is everyone jumping to the same conclusion (or nearly everyone)

they were found NOT guilty and say what you want about police out there but when an Oxfordshire-based forensic scientist says no DNA was found then you gotta admit that the evidence is showing innocent.

[quot]Oxfordshire-based forensic scientist Susan Woodroffe said no DNA from either of the accused was found in the McAreaveys' hotel room or on Michaela's body.

and yes its terrible for the Harte family not to have closure but think of those on trial and their families and their loved ones too.

If you were being dragged through the mud suspected of an horrific crime that you didn't commit then your family and loved ones are affected too.

Innocent until proven guilty remember and they were found NOT guilty.

eh.......OJ Simpson was also found NOT guilty!!

davet82

up for anything wrote: »

I'd say there are a lot of people in Ireland waiting for justice from the Irish legal system or people who will never get it. Do we boycott Ireland till they get it?

i'd boycott ireland if i could but i'm stuck here...


but seriously, yeah why the fcuk not, maybe if people banded together more things might actually get done

europa11

europa11 wrote: »

Devastating news for the family and in particular John McAreavey, who has been put through this hell again. To think the shameful and disgusting behavoiur of the defence team actually worked on the Jury.

Apart from tinned fish and some fruit that I can recall coming from Mauritius, I'll be making sure none of my future purchases come from that island.

As for holidays there! You'd want to be crazy after this to go near the place.

As another poster mentioned above, the evidence suggests that these men are innocent. If you want to blame someone, blame the police for screwing up the investigation.

It's awful for the family but surely justice is only served if the right people are put behind bars, not the convenient ones.

leahyl

paddyh117 wrote: »

eh.......OJ Simpson was also found NOT guilty!!

And you couldn't get anymore guilty than him!

hondasam

davet82 wrote: »

but seriously, yeah why the fcuk not, maybe if people banded together more things might actually get done

Nice idea but a bit naive some people will not care and the rest will have forgotten about it in a few days.

baldbear

Poor family. Wasn't dna discovered from a unidentified person??

davet82

danniemcq wrote: »

same with the states then, and the UK, and i'm sure many other countries too. also you probably couldn't go to a county in Ireland where there is an unsolved murder.

you can't blame an entire nation for the horrors commited by of a couple of people

i dont blame the people but i honestly believe a corrupt judicial system from the reports over last few weeks...

hondasam

baldbear wrote: »

Poor family. Wasn't dna discovered from a unidentified person??

I think the only DNA found was her husbands.

mr j tayto

Thoughts should be with her poor family now, where can they go from here?

Toxic7

Always thought those two guys were being stitched up

paddyh117

davet82 wrote: »

i'd boycott ireland if i could but i'm stuck here...


but seriously, yeah why the fcuk not, maybe if people banded together more things might actually get done

You're not stuck here - you choose to stay here and complain about it.

there's plenty of ports/airports. Cheerio!

Fentdog84

hondasam wrote: »

I think the only DNA found was her husbands.

Does make you wonder if thats what really happened. All very strange

InTheTrees

My gf is convinced the husband did it.

emo72

well what would be needed for a conviction? an actual eyewitness that saw the killers with his around the victims neck?

as for the dont visit mauritius thoughts? well it certainly wont be high on my list of priorities.

and its not for the conviction. im more angry at the farcical trial, regardless of the outcome.

seamus

hondasam wrote: »

I have to admit in the beginning I did suspect her husband.

It's the logical place to start. If someone is murdered while in the vicinity of someone they know (especially family), then that family member is the most likely suspect.
It's cold and callous, but in situations such as this where someone has died and there are no witnesses, the very first person you arrest for questioning is the spouse.
That's no excuse for the way he was treated in custody though.

I have no "gut" feeling that he was involved at all. Only in Hollywood movies do people develop convuluted plans to get their victim to fall in love with them, marry them and then murder them five days later on honeymoon. Not even the most off the wall conspiracy theorists have proposed any motive for him.

What happens now?

Dunno. Sits as an unsolved case. They will probably go back to the drawing board to try and piece something together to give them an insight.
In most prosecutions you find that the investigating officers already know with nearly 100% surity what happened and whodunnit, it's just a matter of gathering evidence that will stand up to courtroom scrutiny.
So if they still believe these two guys are guilty, they will probably try to gather more evidence against them.

danniemcq

paddyh117 wrote: »

eh.......OJ Simpson was also found NOT guilty!!

oh so everyone who has ever been accused of anything is obviously guilty then.

There will always be cases where the guilty get away and likewise the inncocent are jailed but i'd rather live in a world where there is a greater chance of innocents remaining free than locking everyone up just in case.

baldbear

hondasam wrote: »

baldbear wrote: »

Poor family. Wasn't dna discovered from a unidentified person??

I think the only DNA found was her husbands.

I just google it. Some DNA was found on her head that was never identified
.Awful for the family.

danniemcq

emo72 wrote: »

well what would be needed for a conviction? an actual eyewitness that saw the killers with his around the victims neck?

maybe a witness who was facing jail himself until he got immunity by being a eyewitness himself.

ejmaztec

They may well have picked the wrong guys, which means the guilty feckers get away with it. I wonder if they're going to have another investigation or just sweep the whole thing under the carpet?

The defence lawyers came out with some appalling crap during the trial, and I hope that one day it comes back to bite the feckers.

baldbear

InTheTrees wrote: »

My gf is convinced the husband did it.

He was at the pool waiting for her while she was been murdered. CCTV showed him there at the time. I think the two guys did it but the cops screwed up.

paddyh117

danniemcq wrote: »

oh so everyone who has ever been accused of anything is obviously guilty then.

There will always be cases where the guilty get away and likewise the inncocent are jailed but i'd rather live in a world where there is a greater chance of innocents remaining free than locking everyone up just in case.

did i say that?? No - i was making the point that there are similarities between how the police/prosecution in both cases seem to have messed it up and snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.

I am pie

Whilst the courtroom antics have been an undignified sham, it looks though at least one of the accused could never have committed the crime. He made a call to his sister while the crime was supposedly being committed, also without DNA linking the 2 it's a shame we've got as far as a prosecution.

Looks like an attempted fit up by the police.

hondasam

Fentdog84 wrote: »

Does make you wonder if thats what really happened. All very strange

You would expect to find the husband's DNA they were sharing the same room.
I do wonder and a little bit of me still thinks it was him. I'm aware I will get slated for this.

fishy fishy

there's more to this than meets the eye - and I'm not talking about the two lads (who would have been in a panic when she walked in - too panic to clean up their DNA) and I;m not talking about the poor husband.

It all seems a bit odd to me - very weird scene with no dna, no evidence, etc.

Plazaman

fasttalkerchat wrote: »

The cop who said "you are young, you will find another wife" should be sacked. The circus act legal team should face charges for disrupting the trial.

I well and truly believe that this is due to the lack of a proper Police investigation. It may not be the best way to make up your mind about a Police force but based on the news reports, a murder investigation seemed like too much work for them. They didn't preserve the crime scene like they should have done and seemed too laid back about the whole thing.

Feel sorry for John and his (and Michaelas) family.

fasttalkerchat

hondasam wrote: »

You would expect to find the husband's DNA they were sharing the same room.
I do wonder and a little bit of me still thinks it was him. I'm aware I will get slated for this.

Why though?