A man has been found guilty of the rape and murder of an Irish woman backpacking in India.
Danielle McLaughlin, 28, from County Donegal, was found dead in a field in the western state of Goa in March 2017.
A post-mortem examination found brain damage and strangulation as the cause of death.
Vikat Bhagat was found guilty at the District and Sessions Court in south Goa, India, on Friday and could face life imprisonment, but prosecutors have asked for the death penalty.
His defence team appealed for leniency.
He will be sentenced next Monday.
‘Cruelly ending her beautiful life’
Vikat Bhagat was found guilty at the District and Sessions Court in south Goa, India [Mukesh Kumar]
In a statement afterwards, Danielle’s mother Andrea Brannigan and her sister Joleen McLaughlin Brannigan, said justice “has finally been achieved”.
“There was no other suspect or gang involved in Danielle’s death and Bhagat was solely responsible for cruelly ending her beautiful life,” they said.
The family said they have “endured what has been effectively” an eight-year murder trial with many delays and problems.
The “quest for truth” has been “very tiring” and family said they “are glad it is over”.
“We are content now with the judicial confirmation in public of what we already sadly knew,” they added.
The family said “in memory of Danielle”, they had stayed “patient and respectful of the Indian legal system”.
“We are glad to have visited the area where Danielle spent her last days on this earth, painful and difficult as that was,” the statement continued.
“We now hope that not only that Danielle can rest in peace but that we, as a family, can have some peace and comfort knowing that the person who brutally raped and murdered our precious Danielle has been convicted.”
Danielle’s sister Jolene McLaughlin Brannigan (left) and mother Andrea Brannigan (centre) travelled to Goa for the verdict on Friday [Mukesh Kumar]
A statement was also posted on behalf of the family on the Trust for Danielle McLaughlin Facebook page, saying they never got to see the woman Danielle would have become.
“Because of Vikat she will forever be 28,” the statement said.
“We will never see her smile or hear her laugh and we appreciate all that they have done for our campaign fighting for this outcome.
“She was so much more than a daughter, sister and best friend. She lit up every room she entered and touch the lives of all who met her.”
Ms McLaughlin’s family said they hope Danielle ‘can rest in peace’ [PA]
Rape victims cannot usually be named under Indian law. Their identities are often hidden in a bid to protect them from being shunned in society.
In this case, Danielle McLaughlin’s family have spoken to the media to raise awareness of her case.
Ms McLaughlin, who grew up in Buncrana, had travelled to India in February 2017.
She was there for two weeks before she was murdered..
The Liverpool John Moores University student had been staying in a beach hut with an Australian friend.
The pair had been celebrating Holi, a Hindu festival, in a nearby village.
She left the village at night and her body was found the next day by a local farmer in an isolated spot.
Danielle McLaughlin, who grew up in County Donegal, travelled to India in February 2017 [McLaughlin family]
On Friday morning, Tánaiste (Irish Deputy Prime Minister) Simon Harris paid tribute to Ms McLaughlin’s family, in particular her mother “for her determination and resilience in the face of unimaginable tragedy”.
“While nothing can ease the pain of their loss, I hope that this verdict represents some closure for the family,” he said.
“May Danielle rest in peace.”
Ms McLaughlin, who had dual Irish and British citizenship, travelled to India using a British passport.
In 2018, the then Taoiseach (Irish Prime Minister) Leo Varadkar met and apologised to her family after a misunderstanding about her citizenship.
Her body was brought home to Donegal with the help of the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust.
She is buried in her hometown of Buncrana in the Republic of Ireland.
Locals left photos, flowers and candles near where Ms McLaughlin’s body was found [BBC]
