A 56-year-old man, George Turner, has been sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of Emma Costello McCrory, a 45-year-old mother-of-two, in north Dublin. Turner, from Fairview Avenue, pleaded guilty to the crime earlier this week. The tragic incident occurred on December 15, 2022, when McCrory was found dead in her home on Howth Road, Clontarf, following a house fire.
Detective Gardaí revealed that Turner had been in a relationship with McCrory for approximately three months prior to the murder. On the day of the incident, Turner had been asked by McCrory to go to the shops to buy alcohol and withdraw money using her cash card. After visiting a bookmaker’s, Turner returned to the house. He later claimed to have seen smoke emanating from the building and knocked on neighbors’ doors for assistance. However, prosecutors argued that Turner had set the fire after his return and only drew attention to it when smoke became visible. Notably, Turner did not use his phone to call emergency services.
McCrory’s body was discovered in an upstairs bedroom, and efforts to resuscitate her at the scene were unsuccessful. A post-mortem examination confirmed her death was caused by inhaling carbon monoxide and other toxic gases released during the fire. Traces of alcohol and prescription drugs were found in her blood, which would have rendered her vulnerable and sleepy when the fire started. Fire services found no evidence of an accelerant and determined the fire originated at the foot of her bed.
Initially, Turner speculated that a cigarette might have caused the fire. However, in March 2023, he confessed to an acquaintance that he had ‘burnt Emma’ and set a blanket on fire ‘to take her out of her pain.’ He later admitted to Gardaí that he had ignited McCrory’s bedclothes and left as they began to smolder. Turner claimed McCrory had no quality of life and did not want to live, though he insisted he had not intended to kill her. Shockingly, Turner continued to use McCrory’s cash card for personal expenses for up to 10 days after her death.
Turner, who has 42 prior convictions, mostly for public order and road traffic offenses, had previously been jailed for four years in 2016 for possessing firearms and ammunition under suspicious circumstances, as well as drug-related offenses. McCrory’s mother, Pauline Costello, expressed her heartbreak in court, describing her daughter as a ‘wonderful woman’ and ‘a very caring individual.’ She revealed that McCrory had battled cancer while studying for her degree in England at the age of 19 but had recovered and built a life for herself. Costello emphasized her daughter’s vulnerability when she met Turner.
Turner’s defense lawyer highlighted his client’s remorse and unprompted confessions in March 2023, leading to his guilty plea. Ms. Justice Eileen Creedon extended her sympathies to McCrory’s family, stating that her death occurred in ‘needless and tragic circumstances.’