McCann should spend at least 20 years in jail - McDowell
The double murderer Frank McCann should spend at least 20 years in prison Justice Minister Michael McDowell, said tonight.
Mr McCann, who was convicted of killing his wife Esther and the 18-month-old baby girl they were planning to adopt, succeeded in having his sentences backdated to the day he was arrested.
The family of Esther McCann have pleaded with Mr McDowell to ensure that the 45-year-old is kept in jail as long as possible.
A spokeswoman for Mr McDowell said he had made clear that those found guilty of murder would spend a very long time in jail and added that they should not expect to be released within seven to 10 years.
“A person found guilty of a murder such as this should not expect Minister McDowell to approve a recommendation for release by the Parole Board, if such is ever made, until they have served at least 20 years,” she said.
McCann has been in jail for the last 12 years, after being arrested and charged with the murder in 1993. The first trial collapsed but the second went ahead in 1996 and he was sentenced to two life imprisonment terms.
Marian Leonard, the sister of Esther McCann said the 45-year-old should be kept in jail as long as possible.
“He got concurrent life sentences. It’s up to the Minister for Justice to keep him in jail, that’s where the executive decision lies,” said Marian Leonard.
Ms Leonard described McCann as arrogant, manipulating and evil and said he had shown no signs of remorse.
“We have to keep Frank McCann in prison because we will not be safe if he comes out. There is no telling where he’ll end up,” she told Today FM news.
McCann was a former international swimmer and swimming coach, who owned the Cooperage Bar in Blessington, Co Wicklow.
He is charged with the murder of his wife and a baby, Jessica, after they died in a fire at their home in Rathfarnham in Dublin in September 1992.
The prosecution claimed that he had plotted to kill them after the Adoption Board refused his application to adopt Jessica, who was the child of his sister Jeanette.
The board had received an allegation, which Esther was unaware of, that McCann had fathered a child by a 17-year-old-girl.
