Revealed: Firebomb that killed Tadgh was revenge for another attack

Aaron Holt – who is currently in custody in Midlands Prison – is suspected of arranging for the drug dealer to ‘get a beating’ the day before the arson attack on his own home.

Gardaí believe this was the catalyst for the fire-bombing at Holt’s family home at Castleview Park in Edenderry, Co. Offaly, last Saturday night.

Holt’s four-year-old son, Tadgh Farrell, and his aunt, Mary Holt, 60, were killed in the horrific attack, while his mother, Pauline Holt, remains in intensive care with serious burns.

A source told Extra.ie: "Aaron Holt, father of little Tadgh, organised for another drug dealer, who is also behind bars, to get a beating.

"So in revenge, this criminal organised for the house to be attacked."

Gardaí believe the drug dealer, who was attacked, then contacted criminal associates of his from prison. These Kildare-based associates ordered two juveniles to hurl a firebomb in the front window of Holt’s family home.

4

Tadgh Farrell (4) and Mary Holt (60) were killed in an arson attack.

 On Thursday, Holt was denied compassionate bail to attend his son’s funeral. The 27-year-old father of three, who is awaiting sentence for serious drug offences, made an urgent application before Judge Kenneth Connolly at Mullingar Circuit Criminal Court.

Judge Connolly noted Holt was on remand awaiting sentence at Tullamore Circuit Court in January over a seizure of €32,910 worth of heroin near his home. The offence, under section 15A of the Misuse of Drugs Act, is punishable by a possible minimum 10-year sentence.

The State solicitor for Co. Offaly, Sandra Mahon, told Judge Connolly that Holt’s application would be opposed.

4

Funeral of Tadgh Farrell's funeral procession.

Detective Garda Joseph Bradley testified that Holt was "front and centre" of the drug trade in and around Edenderry, and there were fears for his and other people’s safety if he was released.

Judge Connolly heard Holt had 57 previous convictions, 54 of which were committed on bail, and 10 for drug offences. He also had a history of failing to appear in court, resulting in 15 bench warrants dating back to 2017.

This week, four men were arrested in the Midlands Prison on suspicion of involvement in the planned attack inside the jail.

The suspects, all in their 20s and 30s, were detained for a time under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 at Garda stations in the Garda Eastern Region before being released on Friday and returned to Midlands Prison.

4

Tagdh Farrell.

Gardaí strongly suspect the fire-bombing in Edenderry was carried out in retaliation for this prison attack.

However, other lines of inquiry linked to the drug trade are also being explored.

Meanwhile, gardaí have identified several people they believe played a role in the arson and double killing.

Gardaí searched three houses in Kildare and Offaly on Friday. Officers from the Serious Crime Unit of the Laois/Offaly Garda division were involved in the search operation.

A source told Extra.ie: "It appears this tragedy started over a fight in prison. The criminal ordered lads he knows in Kildare to do the arson attack.

"It looks like they got teenagers to do their dirty work. That’s usually how it works. Young lads have to prove themselves to older gang members."

Gardaí are understood to be making significant progress in the investigation, and arrests are anticipated.

Despite this, sources yesterday warned that arson cases are "hard to prove". One noted, "The first month is crucial to an investigation like this."

Earlier this week, gardaí released footage of the house in Edenderry being firebombed in the hope it would encourage people with information to come forward. It shows two hooded people, who appear small in stature, breaking the front window of the home before hurling the firebomb inside.

* This article was originally published on Extra.ie.