At the Central Criminal Court during a pre-trial hearing last Friday, Owen Maughan, a 22-year-old, admitted to taking the life of a family man, father to two children, almost three years earlier in his residence in north Co Dublin. Maughan from Dun Saithne Avenue, Balbriggan, answered to accusations of bringing about the end of Christopher Hall, who was 65, at the latter’s residence in Dun Saithne Green, Balbriggan, Co Dublin, during the 23rd and 24th of November 2021. The prosecution was spearheaded by senior counsel Garret Baker, with Philipp Rahn SC leading the defence. The pre-trial proceedings, overseen by Justice Paul McDermott at the Central Criminal Court, was initially anticipated to extend over two-and-a-half weeks. Nonetheless, Maughan showed a desire to be formally charged on Friday afternoon, confessing to the sole indictment of Hall’s murder. The presiding judge ordered the creation of a victim impact report and ordered for Maughan to be held in confinement until the 8th of July, at which point it is envisaged that he will receive a compulsory life sentence.