In his evidence before the jury, Lawlor accepted that he was bigger than Mr Ryan and got the better of him in the first two fights. Following the second fight, Mr Ryan drove away in his car but was arrested almost immediately for drunk driving. Mr Ryan threatened to get some "lads" to come and throw "pineapples", slang for grenades, through Lawlor's windows. Some minutes later, Mr Ryan entered Lawlor's home through the back door and left carrying a bag with almost €4,000 inside. Lawlor pursued Mr Ryan to a carpark at the rear of his home and stabbed Mr Ryan once in the neck, severing a branch of the carotid artery and causing his death.

Source: The Herald February 20, 2026 16:02 UTC