Saturday 31 October 2026Compiled from published reports. Every claim links to its source.

Ireland Crime

Every case followed from the first report to the sentence, or to where the reporting stopped.

Case No. 21042Criminal damage · Co. Mayo · 12 May 2023

Banner for murdered Joe Deacy slashed with knife in Mayo

Joe Deacy, a 21-year-old man from St Albans, Hertfordshire, was killed outside a house near Swinford, County Mayo, in the early hours of 12 August 2017, and the murder remains unsolved. A roadside memorial banner reading 'Justice For Joe', placed near where his body was found, has been slashed with a knife twice in recent weeks, most recently on Friday afternoon, 12 May 2023. The banner had also been taken down, dumped and had rubbish thrown at it, and in 2018 wreaths left at the same spot were destroyed. The Irish Mirror reported on 18 May 2023 that the family would put the banner back up and would not give up seeking justice.

  1. Reported18 May
  2. Arrested
  3. Charged
  4. In court
  5. Verdict
  6. Sentenced
reportedhappened, not reportedlatest stagenot yet

Key facts

consolidated from all reports
What happened
A banner commemorating Joe Deacy was slashed with a knife for the second time.
Where
The banner was on a roadside near where Joe Deacy's body was found, near Swinford in County Mayo.
When
  • The banner was destroyed between 2.20 and 3.10 on Friday afternoon, 12 May 2023.
  • Joe Deacy was killed outside a house near Swinford in the early hours of 12 August 2017.
Weapon
The banner was slashed with a knife.
Other details
  • The banner had been slashed with a knife twice in the last few weeks.
  • The banner had previously been taken down and dumped, and rubbish had been thrown at it.
  • In 2018, flower wreaths left at the same spot on Joe Deacy's first anniversary were destroyed.
  • Joe Deacy was 21, from St Albans, Hertfordshire, in the UK, and a Mayo GAA supporter and West Ham United season ticket holder who was a regular visitor to the area.
  • His cousin, Michelle Deacy, claimed that his killers are becoming 'rattled'.
  • The banner reads 'Justice For Joe'.
  • The family said they would put the banner back up and were not giving up on seeking justice.
Investigation
The murder of Joe Deacy remains unsolved.
8 statements extracted from the articles
  • whatA banner commemorating Joe Deacy was slashed with a knife for the second time. (irishmirror.ie)
  • whereThe banner was on a roadside near where Joe Deacy's body was found. (irishmirror.ie)
  • whenThe banner was destroyed between 2.20 and 3.10 on the Friday afternoon before the article. (irishmirror.ie)
  • otherThe banner had been slashed with a knife twice in the last few weeks. (irishmirror.ie)
  • otherThe banner had previously been taken down and dumped, and rubbish had been thrown at it. (irishmirror.ie)
  • otherIn 2018, flower wreaths left at the same spot on Joe Deacy's first anniversary were destroyed. (irishmirror.ie)
  • otherJoe Deacy was killed outside a house near Swinford in the early hours of 12 August 2017. (irishmirror.ie)
  • otherThe family said they would put the banner back up and were not giving up on seeking justice. (irishmirror.ie)

The reporting

newest first
  1. 18 May2023
    Reportedirishmirror.ie, first report
    Anger as banner for murdered GAA fanatic is slashed with a knife

    Reports a new incident of criminal damage to a memorial banner for Joe Deacy, the second knife attack on it, rather than the 2017 killing itself.