User:Bastewart22095/Eugene Moloney

Eugene Moloney (ca. 1957 – 24 June 2012) was an Irish journalist who had worked for the Irish News in Belfast, Northern Ireland and later the Evening Herald and Irish Independent in Dublin among other newspapers. Moloney was found dead on a Dublin street after being attacked and struck on the head while walking in the early morning.

Early history
Eugene Moloney was born in England but grew up in Fortwilliam Park, north Belfast. He is the son of John and Peig Moloney. He had a brother Sean Moloney and a sister Roisin McCaughan. His father John Moloney was from Tankardstown, Co Limerick and he died in Birmingham in the 1960s. After his father's death, the family then moved to Belfast and later in Co Donegal. His mother, who died in 2007, settled in the village of Fahan.

Moloney graduated from St Malachy's College.

According to the coroner's report, Moloney, died of internal bleeding to the brain. His funeral took place at the Church of Our Lady Queen of Peace in Dublin, and his final resting place was at St. Mura's parish church in Co Donegal.

Career
He started his career in the 1970s at the Irish News in Belfast where he reported on the Troubles. He moved to Dublin in the mid-1980s where he wrote for the Evening Herald and the Irish Independent, and he worked around 20 years at the latter. His most recent employer was the Irish Daily Mail but as he had just returned from Vietnam, he was working there as a freelancer.

Death
Eugene Moloney, 55, was murdered on 24 June 2012 in Dublin. He was on the way to his home in the Portobello area of Dublin's south side in the early hours of a Sunday morning when he was struck to the head on Camden Street. After Moloney was punched in the side of the head, he was robbed of his wallet and identification card and he was left on the ground until he was discovered around 4:30 a.m. Moloney was rushed to St James' Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Two men were initially held in custody after the Moloney attack and one was charged. Gary Burch, 21, from Kennington Close, Templeogue, County Dublin, later pleaded guilty to charges of manslaughter for striking Moloney in the head once and killing him. Burch had consumed 10 bottles of beer and several shots more of alcohol prior to attacking Moloney, and he said he was "too drunk" to remember his actions about that night he killed Moloney. He was sentenced to five and one-half years in prison with two years suspended. Burch was a trainee mechanic and a former amateur boxer.

Context
Eugene Moloney was one among 21 people who died because of one punch between 2004 and 2013 in Northern Ireland.

Reactions
Moloney's siblings were upset with Burch's short sentence for the killing of their brother. Sean Moloney said, "Irish society needed to look at the much too lenient sentences given for unprovoked street attacks, while parents needed to check their attitude to children's behaviour."

Awards
After Eugene Moloney's murder, a South Asian Gaelic Games award for Most Valuable Player was named after him. The South Asian Gaelic Games is for soccer teams from Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore, Vietnam, Indonesia and India, and Moloney was a former player for the Viet Celts in 2011, the year he was given a medal for most mature (in years accumulated) player on the pitch.