Limerick hotel killer takes High Court case over parole application

Limerick murder victim Grainne Dillon

A MAN serving a life sentence for murdering a Limerick hotel worker 20 years ago, has brought a High Court challenge over what he claims is a refusal by the Minister for Justice to consider him for parole.

Paulo Nascimento (46) was convicted in 2003 of murdering 24-year old Cork native, Grainne Dillon, who was a trainee manager at the former Juryโ€™s Inn hotel in Limerick on January 5, 2002.

Nascimento pleaded guilty to shooting Ms Dillon a number of times at the hotel, after she caught him stealing โ‚ฌ3,000 from the hotel with a stolen gun.

Heย previously failed in applications before the High Court and Supreme Court to be transferred to a prison in his native Portugalย to be near his family and because of the behaviour of other prisoners towards him.

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Heย has now lodged a challenge to Justice Minster Helen McEnteeโ€™s refusal to consider his entitlement to parole, the High Court heard last Monday.

He has claimed he applied for parole on several occasions under the non-statutory Parole Board system between 2001 and 2021.

Nascimento, who is currently serving his sentence at Shelton Abbey Prison, has argued that a parole board recommended he be granted temporary release, sometime at the start of 2022.