Family of Kilkenny man killed in London still in ‘utter shock’

John Mackey was on his way back from the supermarket on the afternoon of May 6 before he was attacked near Goodchild Road, North London.

The Callan native sustained head injuries and died in hospital two days later.

Mr Mackey, who moved to England when he was 19 years old, is survived by four siblings and a large group of nieces and nephews.

Speaking on RTÉ Radio 1 on Tuesday morning, the late pensioner’s nephew, Adrian, branded him an "enigma" while niece Margaret added "he was just a charming, simple man."

Detailing the lead up to Mr Mackey’s attack, Adrian explained that he had rang his sister that morning and was "in great form."

"He said I’m going to go out and get myself a bit of dinner and a few bits in the Co-Op" Adrian explained.

"He went out, he went to the Co-Op; he bought a few little provisions — cornflakes; a shepherd's pie — and he stopped and got himself sausage and chips for his dinner on the way home in the kebab shop."

"At 5.52 in the evening, he was attacked literally within sight of his front door."

Margaret added, "He was just an old 87-year-old man going about his business down at the Co-Op and coming home. It was an utter shock – the brutality of it – that it could happen to him.

"My view on that is nothing is forever," Adrian told RTÉ’s London correspondent Tommy Meskill. "We all die, but it’s how it happened.

"There’s a general air of disbelief, shock, an incredibly deep sorrow in how it happened."

 Mr Mackey returns to his hometown of Callan, Co. Kilkenny, where he will be laid to rest on Thursday, June 26, for a Requiem Mass at 11 am.

His signature hat will be perched on his coffin, which will have the flag of his beloved Arsenal FC draped across it.

Peter Augustine, 58, of Green Lanes, Hornsey, north London, was arrested on May 8 and charged in relation to Mr Mackey’s death. He is due in court for a plea hearing next month.

* This article was originally published on Extra.ie.