A former soldier could face up to 30 years in prison after being found guilty of murdering his girlfriend from south Dublin while on holiday in Spain. A jury in Tarragona convicted Keith Byrne of killing Kirsty Ward by strangling her with a hair straightener cord after she told him she planned to leave him, reports The Mirror.
Byrne, 34, had claimed in court that Kirsty, 36, had taken her own life at their hotel, the four-star Magnolia Hotel in Salou, a resort on the Costa Daurada. He portrayed himself as a “respectful and intelligent” father-of-three who would never engage in domestic abuse, describing Kirsty as erratic and claiming their relationship had turned “toxic” due to alcohol and cocaine use.
The trial judge, following Spanish legal procedure, will now take time to determine the sentence, meaning Byrne may not know his fate for nearly a month. A private prosecutor representing Kirsty’s family continues to seek the maximum sentence of 30 years, reports The Mirror.
Prosecutor Javier Goimil has requested a 20-year sentence, reducing his original demand slightly in light of the jury’s finding that Byrne had “diminished mental faculties” due to drug use at the time of the killing. The convicted man was taken from court in handcuffs, having spent nearly two years in custody since his arrest.
Mr Goimil, who specializes in domestic violence cases, dismissed Byrne’s claim that Kirsty had died by suicide, telling jurors last Wednesday that the evidence clearly pointed to murder, reports The Mirror.
He alleged that Byrne couldn’t accept the end of their volatile relationship, telling the court: “You’re mine or you’re nobody’s.” The forensic report indicated Kirsty was strangled from behind sometime between 8pm and 10pm on July 2, 2023, after consuming alcohol and cocaine.
Goimil said: “Byrne has adapted his version of events to match the evidence gathered nearly two years after the fact. He claims Kirsty tied a cord around her neck and fastened it to a door knob, but she would have been physically incapable of that in her state. And there was no knot on the cord,” reports The Mirror.
He continued: “What happened here was a violent and agonizing death—a strangulation from behind with force applied from front to back. This wasn’t suicide.”
He added that Kirsty didn’t leave any farewell message for her teenage son, her siblings, or her mother, and had already bought a flight back to Dublin for July 4, reports The Mirror.
He described the relationship as “toxic, intense and emotional,” saying Kirsty had decided to break it off during the holiday, but Byrne couldn’t accept it. “In his mind, it was: ‘You’re mine or no one’s.’ He didn’t believe she had the right to leave him and live independently. That’s why he killed her the way he did.”
The prosecutor also noted that Kirsty’s level of intoxication would have impaired her ability to fight back. On the opening day of the trial, Kirsty’s mother Jackie Ward testified that she “didn’t like” or “trust” Byrne, and said she later learned her daughter had planned to end the relationship during their trip, reports The Mirror.
When asked if she thought Kirsty could have taken her own life, she firmly replied: “She did everything for her son. She would never ever leave him. She would never do that to him.”
Deliberations began on Monday after the May 1 Bank Holiday. Byrne’s lawyer, Jordi Cabre, had sought an acquittal, and after the verdict asked for the lowest possible sentence, reports The Mirror.
Following the jury’s decision, Kirsty’s family issued a statement thanking their private prosecutor Estela Cortes and her team, as well as public prosecutor Goimil, the Spanish police and investigators, and the jury. “Our family now request our privacy to be respected, while we grieve and come to terms with all that has happened during the past two years,” the statement said.
Jackie Ward paid tribute to her daughter at her funeral in Ballinteer, Dublin, in July 2023, calling her “a fantastic friend” and “an absolutely adored daughter.” She said: “The two of them were an amazingly strong and tight team and I hope to continue the great work she has done. To me she was a fantastic friend and an absolutely adored daughter to myself and John. She was a caring sister, a cherished granddaughter and much loved niece and cousin. A loyal and true friend,” reports The Mirror.
An online fundraiser launched by the family to support legal expenses has raised over €32,000. More information and the option to donate is available online.
It was revealed after Byrne’s arrest in Spain that he was also wanted by the Royal Military Police in the UK for desertion, having left the military and relocated to Ireland in 2017. Reports in Ireland last March indicated that Spanish prosecutors planned to question two of his former partners to provide background for the case. One of them previously told the Irish Independent that Byrne had once attempted to strangle her during an incident in Co Meath, reports The Mirror.
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