Laois locals to feature in documentary on Portlaoise woman's unsolved murder 

A new TG4 documentary will bring Irish audiences back to 1993, to examine the tragic unsolved murder of Portlaoise woman Marie Kilmartin.

Originally from Ballinasloe, Co. Galway, Ms Kilmartin was living in Portlaoise when she disappeared from her home on December 16, 1993.

Portlaoise locals have taken part in interviews for this documentary, including Cllr Tommy Mulligan as a Portlaoise local, and  former Fianna Fáíl election candidate Austin Stack, who is a friend of Ms Kilmartin's daughter Aine.

Pictured: Áine Kilmartin, daughter of Marie Kilmartin.

This documentary follows Marie’s daughter Áine, who had been adopted, as she searches for answers as to who murdered her birth mother. 

Áine was 20 years old when she discovered that Marie was her birth mother and since then she has made it her mission to uncover the truth.

Featuring archive footage from the time and interviews with local people we learn how Marie’s murder left an everlasting and traumatic mark on not only her loved ones but the wider community of Portlaoise.  

READ MORE: 'Substantial' reward offered in bid to solve 30 year old murder in Laois

In the search for Ms Kilmartin's killer, three arrests have been made in the Portlaoise area as part of a Gardaí investigation, but to date, no one has been charged.

Midas Productions and TG4 have produced a podcast of the same name, which runs alongside the TV edition and explores the societal impact of each case and is available to listen to across all the major podcast platforms. 

"This series could not have been made without the cooperation of each family and loved ones who shared their story and allowed us the privilege of filming with them," a spokesperson from TG4 has said.

Pictured: The location Ms Kilmartin's body was found, in Mountmellick.

Marie had returned from a Christmas party at the local nursing home where she volunteered.  After receiving a mysterious phone call, Marie left her home and was not seen until six months later, when her body was discovered by a local man out walking on a bog site near Mountmellick in Co. Laois.

A murder investigation began, one which continues to this day over 30 years later. 

READ MORE: Gardaí make new appeal 30 years after Portlaoise woman's murder

This programme explores how Marie’s life and murder reflect the treatment of women in Ireland in the 1970s and ‘80s, as we learn about the institutionalisation of unwed mothers and how society viewed them.

Marie’s disappearance and murder happened during a period of time when a number of women were going missing and some later found to have been murdered, the majority of these cases remain unsolved, these murders are better known as “The Vanishing Triangle” cases. 

Pictured: Marie Kilmartin

MARÚ INÁR MEASC is a three-part true crime documentary series by Midas Productions for TG4, which shines a light on the effect that fatal crimes have on society, local communities and on the victim’s families as they are left without answers. 

This documentary features the first-hand account of former Detective Chief Superintendent John O’Brien, who recalls visiting the scene of the discovery of Marie’s body and who decades later is still haunted by this case. He only hopes that Marie’s loved ones will get justice and that this case can finally be put to rest. 

MARÚ INÁR MEASC will air on Wednesday, February 26 at 9:30pm on TG4.

READ MORE: Laois TD urges HSE to 'step up a gear' and deliver primary care centres