Daniel Blanaru sentenced to life for murder of partner Larisa Serban in Athboy, Co Meath
Larisa Serban, a 26-year-old woman and mother of three, was stabbed to death at the couple's home in Rathmore, Athboy, Co Meath, in the early hours of 12 August 2022. Her partner, Daniel Blanaru, a 37-year-old man, presented himself at Drogheda Garda station around 6am that morning and told gardaí he had killed her. He pleaded not guilty to murder at a seven-week trial at the Central Criminal Court, where a jury returned a unanimous guilty verdict on 1 April 2025 after three hours and two minutes of deliberation. On 10 April 2025, Ms Justice Eileen Creedon sentenced him to the mandatory term of life imprisonment, backdated to the day he went into custody.
- Reportednot reported
- Arrestednot reported
- Chargednot reported
- In courtnot reported
- Convicted1 Apr
2 reports - Sentenced10 Apr
2 reports
Key facts
consolidated from all reports- What happened
- Larisa Serban sustained two stab wounds, a 12cm wound to her chest that punctured her heart, lung and aorta, and a second to her arm that fractured a bone.
- Where
- The murder took place at the couple's home in Rathmore, Athboy, Co Meath.
- When
- The murder occurred in the early hours of 12 August 2022.
- Cause
- She died from the stab wound to her chest.
- Weapon
- The weapon was never located.
- Investigation
- Blanaru presented himself at Drogheda Garda station at around 6am on 12 August 2022 and told gardaí he had killed her; her blood was found on his clothing.
- Charges
- Blanaru pleaded not guilty to the murder of his partner.
- In court
- The seven-week trial at the Central Criminal Court, presided over by Ms Justice Eileen Creedon, concluded with a unanimous murder verdict on 1 April 2025 after three hours and two minutes of jury deliberation.
- Sentence
- On 10 April 2025, Blanaru was sentenced to the mandatory term of life imprisonment, backdated to the day he went into custody.
- Other details
- Blanaru, from Rathmore, Athboy, Co Meath, has six previous convictions in Ireland for road traffic matters and four theft offences in France between 2008 and 2014.
- Larisa Serban was a mother of three.
41 statements extracted from the articles
- whatMs Serban sustained two stab wounds, one to her chest measuring 12cm which punctured her heart, lung and aorta, and a second to her arm which fractured a bone. (irishtimes.com)
- whatBlanaru presented himself at Drogheda Garda station at around 6am on 12 August 2022. (irishtimes.com)
- whatAdriana Kovaciu was asleep when her husband Leon Ciurar received a call from Blanaru at about 4am. (irishtimes.com)
- whatShe sustained a stab wound to her chest measuring 12cm which punctured the heart, lung and aorta. (irishmirror.ie)
- whatA second stab wound to her arm was of such force that it fractured a bone. (irishmirror.ie)
- whatHer blood was found on Blanaru's clothing. (irishmirror.ie)
- whatBlanaru had threatened her parents that he would kill her. (irishmirror.ie)
- whatThe victim sustained two stab wounds, one to her chest measuring 12cm that punctured the heart, lung and aorta. (irishtimes.com)
- whatTwo of the family witnesses resiled from their statements in their direct evidence at trial. (irishtimes.com)
- whatThe accused later confirmed to detectives that he did not find his partner with anyone else. (irishtimes.com)
- whatLarisa Serban was found on the floor between the bedroom and hallway in the early hours of the morning. (irishmirror.ie)
- whatShe sustained two stab wounds in total. (irishmirror.ie)
- whereBlanaru is from Rathmore, Athboy, Co Meath. (irishmirror.ie)
- whereThe victim was found on the floor between the bedroom and the hallway of her home in the early hours of the morning. (irishtimes.com)
- whereThe accused is from Rathmore, Athboy, Co Meath. (irishtimes.com)
- whereThe murder took place at the couple's home in Rathmore, Athboy, Co Meath. (irishmirror.ie)
- whenThe murder occurred on or about 12 August 2022. (irishmirror.ie)
- whenThe murder occurred on 12 August 2022. (irishmirror.ie)
- causeShe died from a stab wound to the chest. (irishmirror.ie)
- causeThe victim died from a stab wound to the chest. (irishtimes.com)
- causeShe died from a stab wound to the chest that measured 12cm and punctured the heart, lung and aorta. (irishmirror.ie)
- chargeBlanaru had pleaded not guilty to the murder. (irishmirror.ie)
- courtThe trial ran for seven weeks. (irishtimes.com)
- courtBlanaru will be sentenced to the mandatory term of life imprisonment on 10 April 2025. (irishtimes.com)
- courtMs Justice Eileen Creedon exempted the jury from further jury duty for 10 years. (irishtimes.com)
- courtThe jury deliberated for three hours and two minutes before returning a unanimous murder verdict. (irishmirror.ie)
- courtThe trial ran for seven weeks with an enlarged panel of 15 jurors. (irishmirror.ie)
- courtMs Justice Eileen Creedon presided over the trial. (irishmirror.ie)
- courtEilis Brennan SC represented the Director of Public Prosecutions. (irishmirror.ie)
- courtBlanaru pleaded not guilty to the murder. (irishmirror.ie)
- courtThe sentencing hearing is scheduled for 10 April 2025. (irishmirror.ie)
- courtThe accused pleaded not guilty to the murder. (irishtimes.com)
- courtMs Justice Eileen Creedon passed the sentence. (irishmirror.ie)
- sentenceBlanaru will be sentenced to the mandatory term of life imprisonment. (irishmirror.ie)
- sentenceDaniel Blanaru was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of his partner. (irishtimes.com)
- sentenceThe sentence was backdated to the day the accused went into custody. (irishtimes.com)
- sentenceDaniel Blanaru was sentenced to life in prison at the Central Criminal Court. (irishmirror.ie)
- sentenceThe sentence could be backdated to the moment Blanaru went into custody. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherBlanaru has six previous convictions in Ireland for road traffic matters. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherHis criminal record includes four theft offences in France between 2008 and 2014. (irishmirror.ie)
- otherLarisa Serban was a mother of three. (irishmirror.ie)
The reporting
newest first- 10 Apr2025Family of murdered mum-of-three blast killer
Reports the sentencing hearing at the Central Criminal Court where Ms Justice Eileen Creedon imposed a mandatory life sentence, including victim impact statements from the Serban family, trial evidence on the nature of the fatal wounds, and details of Blanaru's criminal history.
victim, Larisa Serban, 26, female, non-irish (judged from name)Larisa Serbanconvicted, Daniel Blanaru, 37, male, named, non-irish (judged from name)Daniel Blanaru - 10 Apr2025Mother of murdered woman ‘sick’ that killer ‘is alive while my daughter is in the ground’
Reports the sentencing hearing at the Central Criminal Court where Ms Justice Eileen Creedon imposed a mandatory life sentence, including the victim impact statement from the victim's mother, trial evidence about the stab wounds, and the defence claim that the killing was provoked by an alleged affair which was later contradicted.
victim, Larisa Serban, 26, female, non-irish (judged from name)Larisa Serbanconvicted, Daniel Blanaru, 37, male, named, non-irish (judged from name)Daniel Blanaru - 1 Apr2025Murdered in 'cold blood' - jury takes 3 hours to convict man of partner's murder
Reports the jury's unanimous murder conviction after three hours and two minutes of deliberation, details of the stab wounds, the judge's remarks, and the sentencing date of 10 April 2025.
victim, Larisa Serban, 26, female, non-irish (judged from name)Larisa Serbansuspect, Daniel Blanaru, 37, male, named, non-irish (judged from name)Daniel Blanaru - 1 Apr2025Daniel Blanaru (37) convicted of murdering partner Larisa Serban (26) ‘in cold blood’
Reports the jury's guilty verdict after a seven-week trial, including details of the injuries (two stab wounds, one 12cm to the chest puncturing heart, lung and aorta), witness testimony from family members, Blanaru's changing accounts to gardaí, and the fact the weapon was never located. Sentencing set for 10 April 2025.
victim, Larisa Serban, 26, female, non-irish (judged from name)Larisa Serbansuspect, Daniel Blanaru, 37, male, named, non-irish (judged from name)Daniel Blanaru