Wednesday 28 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. 7089Murder · Co. Offaly · 12 Jan 2022

Jozef Puska sentenced to life for murder of Ashling Murphy in Tullamore

On 12 January 2022, Ashling Murphy, a 23-year-old teacher, was murdered in the afternoon while out jogging on the Grand Canal in Tullamore, Co Offaly. Jozef Puska, a Slovakian man, stabbed her repeatedly in the neck, and his DNA was found under her fingernails. Public CCTV was instrumental in the case against him. Puska was sentenced to life for murder in November 2023, and the latest report says an appeal against conviction is pending, though a related headline says he abandoned it.

  1. Reportednot reported
  2. Arrestednot reported
  3. Chargednot reported
  4. In courtnot reported
  5. Verdictnot reported
  6. Sentenced17 Nov
reportedhappened, not reportedlatest stagenot yet

Key facts

consolidated from all reports
What happened
  • Ashling Murphy, a 23-year-old teacher, was murdered.
  • Jozef Puska, a Slovakian man, was sentenced to life for murdering her.
Where
The murder happened on the Grand Canal in Tullamore, Co Offaly.
When
The murder happened on 12 January 2022 in the afternoon while Ms Murphy was out jogging.
Cause
  • Gardaí suspect Puska set out to sexually attack a woman in or around Tullamore, and detectives believe the murder was a sexual attack that went wrong, but the motive will never be proven.
  • Puska stabbed Ms Murphy repeatedly in the neck.
Weapon
Puska was carrying a knife on the day.
Investigation
  • Puska's DNA was found under Ms Murphy's fingernails.
  • CCTV provided by the public was instrumental in bringing the case against Puska.
Other details
  • A postmortem showed no signs of a sexual attack.
  • Gardaí believe Puska's stab wounds to his abdomen were self-inflicted.
  • Puska had no previous convictions in the State before the murder.
Sentence
Puska was sentenced to life after trial at the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin in November 2023.
In court
The Irish Times report says an appeal against conviction is pending, while a related headline says Puska abandoned the appeal.
12 statements extracted from the articles
  • whereThe murder happened on the Grand Canal. (irishtimes.com)
  • whenThe murder happened in the afternoon while Ms Murphy was out jogging. (irishtimes.com)
  • whenGardaí suspect Puska set out to sexually attack a woman in or around Tullamore on January 12th, 2022. (irishtimes.com)
  • causeDetectives believe the murder was a sexual attack that went wrong, but the motive will never be proven. (irishtimes.com)
  • causePuska stabbed Ms Murphy repeatedly in the neck. (irishtimes.com)
  • weaponPuska was carrying a knife on the day. (irishtimes.com)
  • investigationPuska's DNA was found under Ms Murphy's fingernails. (irishtimes.com)
  • investigationCCTV provided by the public was instrumental in bringing the case against Puska. (irishtimes.com)
  • sentenceJozef Puska was sentenced to life for murdering Ashling Murphy. (irishtimes.com)
  • otherA postmortem showed no signs of a sexual attack. (irishtimes.com)
  • otherGardaí believe Puska's stab wounds to his abdomen were self-inflicted. (irishtimes.com)
  • otherPuska had no previous convictions in the State before the murder. (irishtimes.com)

The reporting

newest first
  1. 17 Nov2023
    Sentencedirishtimes.com, first report
    Murder of Ashling Murphy ‘a monstrous crime that shocked the nation’, senior garda says

    Reports the life sentence for Jozef Puska after his trial, with the senior garda's tribute, the family's victim impact statement, and details of the investigation and the evidence, including CCTV and DNA. Notes an appeal against conviction is pending.

    convicted, Jozef Puska, male, Slovakian, named, non-irishJozef Puskavictim, Ashling Murphy, 23, female, irish (judged from name)Ashling Murphy