Portadown man's murder by his neighbour had 'all the hallmarks of an execution'

Belfast Crown Court has been told that the murder of a 63-year-old man by his neighbour in Portadown had “all the hallmarks of an execution”.

Stephen Barraskill was killed in the bedroom of his home in Whitesides Hill in October 2021. He was blasted twice in the chest with a shotgun at close range

Connor Lawrence McNeill, 55, who lived half a mile away on the same road pleaded guilty earlier this year to his murder and is now serving a life sentence for the killing.

He was back in the dock on Friday to hear how long he will spend in prison for the crime but that will now be decided later.

His defence Barrister revealed that he shot Mr Barriskill after a series of threats were issued against him and his family.

The Judge was told that prior to the murder they had been friends for many years but that in the spring of 2021, there was a "breakdown in that relationship."

The court heard the falling out occurred after McNeill told Mr Barriskill he should have been taking better care of his frail and elderly father.

Claiming that Mr Barriskill issued multiple threats against him and his family over the following months, McNeill said he 'flipped', went to Mr Barriskill's house and shot him twice in the chest with his legally-held shotgun.

He told police that when he got to Mr Barriskill's home, he only intended to scare him with the shotgun but that after entering the bedroom Mr Barriskill woke up and turned on the light.

McNeill added that after telling Mr Barriskill that the threats had to stop, Mr Barriskill acknowledged the shotgun and said "If you are going to use that, you'd better use it now or else I'm going to send some boys down to kill your whole family."

He also claimed that Mr Barriskill then reached for the gun and that a shot was discharged followed by a second shot.

McNeill subsequently pleaded guilty to murdering Mr Barraskill on October 26, 2021, and to possessing a shotgun and two cartridges with intent to endanger life on the same date

His defence barrister said that prior to the shooting, his client was regarded as an "honest, hard-working family man."

Saying McNeill has expressed "genuine and total remorse to the deceased's family" and spoke of the "devastation" the incident has had on the McNeill family.

The barrister spoke of the impact the threats had on his client which he said were made via both texts and telephone calls as well as face-to-face conversations.

He also spoke of a threat made to McNeill's daughter ten days before the gun attack.

Saying his client believed Mr Barriskill was capable of carrying out the threats, he said that on the night in question, McNeill only intended to scare the deceased - but he fully accepted his actions.

Following the lengthy plea hearing, Judge Smyth said: "The issues in this case are unusual and particularly complex and I will take some time to reflect on everything that has been said.

"I can't give a date for sentencing now but I will prioritise this so the family (of the deceased) can begin to get some closure."

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