Case No. 2944Murder · Co. Dublin · 23 Feb 2023
Brandon Gavin found guilty of murdering Marius Mamaliga in Swords
Brandon Gavin, 22, was found guilty by a unanimous Central Criminal Court jury of murdering 19-year-old Marius Mamaliga, who was stabbed in the neck in the backseat of his car at Forest Court, Swords, on 23 February 2023. Sentencing was adjourned to 2 December 2024 and Gavin was remanded in custody.
- Reportednot reported
- Arrestednot reported
- Chargednot reported
- In court12 Nov
- Convicted13 Nov
2 reports - Sentenced
reportedhappened, not reportedlatest stagenot yet
Key facts
consolidated from all reports42 statements extracted from the articles
- whatGavin got into the back seat of a car behind the deceased and stabbed him in the neck without warning (irishtimes.com)
- whatGavin told gardaí he stabbed Mamaliga in self-defence because he was in fear for his life as he owed money for drugs (irishtimes.com)
- whatMamaliga had sold cannabis in the past (irishtimes.com)
- whatGavin owed Mamaliga €2,000 for cocaine (irishtimes.com)
- whatGavin's phone was used to engage with a woman on Tinder 20 minutes before the stabbing (irishtimes.com)
- whatIn the minutes before the killing, Gavin was on Tinder sending messages to two different women (irishtimes.com)
- whatGavin made 47 phone calls on the day of the killing trying to get money together for the drug debt (irishtimes.com)
- whatGavin had a history of depression (irishtimes.com)
- whatAfter the stabbing, Gavin was screaming at his sister and asked his father for a hug before arriving at a Garda station to confess (irishtimes.com)
- whatGavin was at Swords Garda station within an hour of the incident (irishtimes.com)
- whatGavin was messaging women on Tinder just minutes before the stabbing (irishtimes.com)
- whatMamaliga had sold drugs in the past and Gavin owed him money (irishtimes.com)
- whatThe entire stabbing incident lasted about 14 seconds (irishtimes.com)
- whatGavin dropped his mobile phone and two HSE appointment cards in the rear footwell of the car (irishtimes.com)
- whereThe stabbing took place at Forest Court, Swords, on the evening of 23 February 2023 (irishtimes.com)
- whereThe stabbing took place at Forest Court, Swords. (irishmirror.ie)
- whenMamaliga died from his injuries on 26 February 2023, three days after the stabbing. (irishmirror.ie)
- causeMamaliga suffered hypoxic brain injury caused by deprivation of oxygen to the brain due to blood loss (irishtimes.com)
- causeMamaliga suffered hypoxic brain injury caused by blood loss, with arterial bleeding to the left common carotid artery, damage to the left jugular vein and upper windpipe. (irishmirror.ie)
- weaponGavin stabbed Mamaliga in the neck with a knife. (irishmirror.ie)
- investigationA penknife with the deceased's blood was found in a park close to the incident, and the handle contained DNA matching Gavin. (irishmirror.ie)
- investigationGavin's phone and two HSE appointment cards were recovered from the rear footwell of Mamaliga's car. (irishmirror.ie)
- chargeGavin pleaded not guilty to the murder of Marius Mamaliga (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe trial is being presided over by Ms Justice Eileen Creedon (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe jury panel consists of seven men and five women (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe prosecuting counsel is Ronan Kennedy for the Director of Public Prosecutions (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe defence counsel is Dean Kelly (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe jury consisted of seven men and five women and returned a unanimous guilty verdict (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe matter was adjourned to 2 December for victim impact statements and sentencing, with Gavin remanded in custody (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe jury deliberated for close to five hours before returning a unanimous guilty verdict. (irishmirror.ie)
- courtThe matter was adjourned to 2 December 2024 for victim impact statements and sentencing, with Gavin remanded in custody. (irishmirror.ie)
- courtThe jury consisted of seven men and five women, presided over by Ms Justice Eileen Creedon. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherThe entire stabbing incident lasted approximately 14 seconds. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherGavin's phone searched for 'prison sentence for murder in Ireland' at 6.31pm on 22 February 2023, over 24 hours before the stabbing. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherGavin's phone sent a Tinder message at 6.45pm on the day of the stabbing, less than 20 minutes before the incident. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherGavin claimed self-defence, saying he feared for his life because he owed Mamaliga a €2,500 drug debt. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherThe prosecution argued the stabbing was planned and premeditated and the self-defence claim was self-serving nonsense. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherGavin's father Eddie Gavin said his son told him 'Dad, I f**ked up' and that he had 'stabbed this guy'. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherGavin's mother Jacqueline Gavin said Brandon had mental health problems for many years and had self-harmed and attempted suicide on a number of occasions. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherWitness David Octavian described the assailant as 'calm and collected' who 'slowly took out a knife'. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherMessages showed Gavin lied to Mamaliga about missing drugs, claiming gardai had raided his house. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherMamaliga sent Gavin a message three days before his death saying 'You get that sorted? Boys looking for that money on Thursday.' (irishmirror.ie)
The reporting
newest first- 13 Nov2024Murderer was messaging women on Tinder minutes before he launched deadly attack
The jury rejected Gavin's self-defence claim as 'self-serving nonsense' after hearing evidence of a phone search for 'prison sentence for murder in Ireland' the day before, Tinder messages minutes before the attack, and CCTV footage. The prosecution argued the stabbing was 'planned and premeditated'.
victim, Marius Mamaliga, 19, male, non-irish (judged from name)Marius Mamaligaaccused, Brandon Gavin, 22, male, named, irish (judged from name)Brandon Gavin - 13 Nov2024Man (22) found guilty of murder of Marius Mamaliga in Swords
Provides detailed trial evidence including the phone search for 'prison sentence for murder in Ireland' the day before the stabbing, the 14-second duration of the attack, the hypoxic brain injury cause of death, the defence's self-defence claim based on a €2,500 drug debt, and the prosecution's case that the stabbing was planned and premeditated.
victim, Marius Mamaliga, 19, male, non-irish (judged from name)Marius Mamaligaaccused, Brandon Gavin, 22, male, named, irish (judged from name)Brandon Gavin - 12 Nov2024Stabbing of Marius Mamaliga (19) by Brandon Gavin (22) was ‘planned and premeditaed’, jury hears
Details of prosecution and defence closing speeches at the trial, including prosecution's argument that the stabbing was premeditated based on Google search history and Tinder activity, and defence's argument that Gavin was in a state of fear and distress over a €2,000 drug debt.
victim, Marius Mamaliga, 19, male, non-irish (judged from name)Marius Mamaligaaccused, Brandon Gavin, 22, male, named, irish (judged from name)Brandon Gavin