The mother of a young Northern Irish woman found dead in a Co Monaghan canal has said a year-long fight for answers has left her “engulfed in pain and sadness”.
The body of Kelly Lynch (23) from Gilford, Co Armagh, was discovered in the Ulster Canal in Monaghan just hours before the town’s St Patrick’s Day parade was due to begin last year.
Gardaí later said her death was not being treated as suspicious.
Kelly – who lived most of her life in Lisnaskea, Co Fermanagh, had travelled to Monaghan in the days before her death to visit her boyfriend, who had recently suffered a family bereavement.
“We just want to close the door and grieve in peace” – Julieanne Lynch
Since then, mum Julieanne Lynch has led a campaign for answers over what she said was a failure by An Garda Síochána (AGS) to properly investigate her death.
“The closer we get to Kelly’s anniversary, the harder it is. It is just a reminder of the days leading up to her death and us receiving the news over the phone,” she said.
“But if I don’t pull myself back up off the floor, continue to ask the questions and be vocal about what happened to Kelly, I’m never going to find any kind of closure, or sense of peace.
“At the moment, it’s fight or flight really. We are choosing to fight, because if we do sit down and allow everything to get on top of us, I’d be afraid of not being able to get back up again.”
After months of raising concerns about the manner of the investigation, Ms Lynch’s family met with Garda Commissioner Drew Harris and local Chief Superintendent Alan McGovern.
Kelly and her mum Julieanne
Following the meeting, a peer review – an examination of the original investigation to identify any potential additional lines of enquiry – was ordered by Mr Harris.
Julieanne said the family had raised a concern with the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (GSOC), but they are unable to take on the case until the peer review is completed.
“The peer review started on December 5 and what should have been a quick turnaround time is now going to be a lengthy process,” she said.
“It’s so frustrating. The inquest can’t be set until the file has been handed over to the coroner and until the peer review is concluded, they can’t hand it over.
“If they find a line of enquiry that should have been followed, the investigating Gardaí will have to follow up on that. We are just left in limbo and at the mercy of other people’s time and thoroughness.
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“You are continuously checking your emails, your phone to make sure you haven’t missed any important calls. When you feel something should be coming in and it doesn’t come in, you just feel so deflated.
“It’s horrible because you are fighting so hard and trying to live life. I wouldn’t say we are living, but existing. You are trying to do the best you can in the worst possible circumstances.”
The family are seeking a court order to allow them to access data from Kelly’s mobile phone, which they say will help them piece together the hours before her death.
“The question we have been asking is was her phone on her the whole time she was missing or was it elsewhere?” said Julieanne.
“Kelly’s phone was never forensically analysed for any amount of time.
Kelly had travelled to Monaghan to visit her boyfriend
“We have been working with Apple to try and get access to her account, but that wasn’t successful so we are in a position where we now have to do the court order ourselves, but that’s going to be a lengthy process.
“The data would give us a better idea of who she was in contact with in the hours that led up to her death.”
As Kelly’s family prepare to mark her first anniversary, mum Julieanne said focusing efforts on finding answers was helping the family cope with the grief of losing her.
“Sometimes I don’t know how I feel. I spend a lot of the time very numb and other times engulfed in so much pain and sadness,” she said.
“We just want to close the door and grieve in peace, be able to process how we are feeling and everything that has happened.
“Knowing that I don’t have Kelly is just a very overpowering feeling and there is nothing I can do about it. No matter how many tears I cry, or how loud I shout, or how much I pray, I’m never going to get her back.”
Irish police said the peer review into Ms Lynch’s death remains ongoing.
A spokesperson said: “An Garda Síochána is currently conducting that peer review of the original Garda investigation.
“An Garda Síochána is also assisting the coroner’s Inquest and fully co-operating with the GSOC investigation. These processes are ongoing.”
They urged anyone with information on the death of Ms Lynch to contact gardaí.