Sunday 1 November 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. 21838Road traffic incident (fatal, pedestrian struck by bus) · Co. Cork · 3 Aug 2021

Parish priest Fr Con Cronin found to have died accidentally in bus crash, inquest hears

The inquest into the death of 72-year-old Fr Con Cronin, struck by a bus on Strand Road, Monkstown, County Cork, on 3 August 2021, heard that Bus Éireann driver Mark Wills, 51, had lost consciousness due to a cardiac arrhythmia. The jury returned a verdict of accidental death for Fr Cronin and death due to natural causes for Mr Wills.

  1. Reportednot reported
  2. Arrestednot reported
  3. Chargednot reported
  4. In court21 Mar
  5. Verdict
  6. Sentenced
reportedhappened, not reportedlatest stagenot yet

Key facts

consolidated from all reports
16 statements extracted from the articles
  • whatFr Con Cronin was 72 years old (rte.ie)
  • whatThe bus mounted the footpath, veered across the road, struck Fr Cronin, and crashed into five cars (rte.ie)
  • whatMark Wills was 51 years old and a father of two from Ballincollig, Co Cork (rte.ie)
  • whatMark Wills was a Bus Éireann driver (rte.ie)
  • whatMark Wills unequivocally met the standards laid down for Bus Éireann drivers (rte.ie)
  • whereFr Con Cronin was originally from Bantry (rte.ie)
  • whereFr Con Cronin was attached to the harbour parishes of Monkstown and Passage West in County Cork (rte.ie)
  • whereThe bus was travelling along Strand Road in Monkstown (rte.ie)
  • whenThe crash occurred on 3 August 2021 at 1.30pm (rte.ie)
  • causeFr Cronin died of blunt force trauma with multiple fractures due to a road traffic collision (rte.ie)
  • causeMark Wills suffered a cardiac arrhythmia due to ventricular hypertrophy (rte.ie)
  • courtThe jury returned a verdict of accidental death for Fr Cronin (rte.ie)
  • courtThe jury returned a verdict of death due to natural causes, due to ventricular hypertrophy, for Mark Wills (rte.ie)
  • courtThe Coroner's Court was sitting in Midleton (rte.ie)
  • courtThe Coroner for South Cork is Frank O'Connell (rte.ie)
  • otherThe Coroner described the tragedy as highly unusual and a rare occurrence (rte.ie)

The reporting

newest first
  1. 21 Mar2023
    In courtrte.ie, first report
    Driver lost consciousness before crash, coroner hears

    Inquest verdict returned: accidental death for Fr Con Cronin; natural causes (ventricular hypertrophy) for bus driver Mark Wills. Coroner described the tragedy as highly unusual and a rare occurrence.

    victim, Fr Con Cronin, 72, male, irish (judged from name)Fr Con Croninvictim, Mark Wills, 51, male, irish (judged from name)Mark Wills