Marcin Pieciak, of Glendale, Queens, pleaded guilty on Thursday to manslaughter in the first degree for fatally stabbing his girlfriend, Co Longford woman Sarah McNally, in New York in March 2024.
McNally, 41, was working as a bartender at The Céilí House in Maspeth, Queens, when Pieciak, 37, stabbed her and then slit his own throat on the evening of March 30, 2024.
“Marcin Pieciak walked into Sarah McNally’s place of employment and viciously attacked the 41-year-old," Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said on Thursday.
"The defendant stabbed the victim 19 times, severing her spine, and then stabbed himself as he tried to escape the premises.
"Thankfully, a brave bar patron stopped the defendant and detained him until police arrived.
"This murder shocked the community and McNally’s loved ones.
"With this guilty plea, the defendant has been held accountable for his actions.”
The Queens District Attorney's Office said on Thursday that Supreme Court Justice Ushir Pandit-Durant is expected to sentence Pieciak on November 21 to 24 years in prison, followed by five years of post-release supervision.
DA Katz said that, according to the charges, Pieciak arrived at The Céilí House Bar, located on Grand Avenue in Maspeth, at about 6:30 pm on March 30, 2024.
He walked toward McNally as she worked, went behind the bar, and stabbed her 19 times in the neck, back, and chest, causing significant wounds and bleeding.
Pieciak then cut his own throat several times with a second knife and attempted to flee, but a patron intervened and prevented him from leaving the premises.
When police arrived, Pieciak exited the premises with the two knives and brandished the weapons toward the officers. Police safely disarmed him and recovered the knives.
McNally suffered a damaged carotid artery and severed spine and was pronounced deceased at a local hospital.
McNally was laid to rest in her native Co Longford on April 8, just over a week after her shocking murder. Mourners heard that the Irish woman was "larger than life, she was someone special, a unique force to be reckoned with who was made for great things."
A month's mind Mass was held at St. Adalbert's Roman Catholic Church in Elmhurst, Queens, later in April.
Meanwhile, a GoFundMe to assist McNally's family with funeral costs and related expenses has received more than 220 donations. In an update in May 2024, McNally's mother wrote that the remaining £3500 was donated to the "wonderful" Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust, which "helped to bring Sarah home to Ireland."
McNally's mother added: "I really don't think Sarah realized how much she was loved."
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