{"id":4158,"date":"2025-07-17T01:45:15","date_gmt":"2025-07-17T01:45:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/4158\/"},"modified":"2025-07-17T01:45:15","modified_gmt":"2025-07-17T01:45:15","slug":"millionaire-farmer-75-died-a-day-after-secretly-marrying-his-carer-50-and-was-embalmed-with-undue-haste-court-hears-as-his-family-rubbish-wifes-claim-shed-dated-him-since-she-was-16-and-beg","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/4158\/","title":{"rendered":"Millionaire farmer, 75, died a DAY after secretly marrying his carer, 50, and was embalmed with ‘undue haste’, court hears – as his family rubbish wife’s claim she’d dated him since she was 16 and beg police to investigate"},"content":{"rendered":"

A widow fled court in tears during a dramatic inquest where she was all but accused of causing the death of her much older husband – who she’d married just a day before his death and buried with ‘undue haste’.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Lawyers for Lisa Flaherty, 50, said she had been ‘hauled over the coals’ during the three-day inquest in Tullamore, Ireland, as the family of Joseph Grogan, who was 75 at the time of his death, vowed to challenge their short-lived marriage.<\/p>\n

The barrister representing three of Mr Grogan’s cousins, Damien Tansey cast doubt over Ms Flaherty’s claims her late husband was suffering from inoperable, stage 4 cancer, as he dramatically declared: ‘None of that evidence is true or accurate.’\u00a0<\/p>\n

He also told the court that Ms Flaherty’s claim their relationship began when she was 16 and put the deceased in the ‘realm of being a paedophile’ and had caused great upset to his family.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The three-day proceedings at a court in Tullamore drew to a close on July 16 as coroner Raymond Mahon recorded a narrative verdict in the case of Mr Grogan, who was suffering from cancer and died just a day after getting \u2018secretly\u2019 married to his carer Ms Flaherty.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr Mahon dismissed suggestions by barristers for Joseph Grogan\u2019s family that the garda\u00ed should conduct a thorough, forensic investigation before he reached his decision.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The court heard Mr Grogan, 75, was being treated for cancer<\/a> but had been responding well to treatment. He died at his home at around 3pm on April 15, 2023, the day after attending a registry office to marry Ms Flaherty, 50.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Within hours, his body was embalmed, making it virtually impossible to determine a definite cause of death, Mr Mahon noted. Mr Grogan was a well-known figure in the farming community, and hosted the National Ploughing Championships between 2016 and 2018.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Lawyers <\/p>\n

Lawyers for Lisa Flaherty, 50, said she had been ‘hauled over the coals’ during the three-day inquest as the family of Joseph Grogan (above), who was 75 at the time of his death, vowed to challenge their short-lived marriage<\/p>\n

\"Lisa <\/p>\n

Lisa Flaherty fled the court in tears after\u00a0she was all but accused of causing the death of her much older husband<\/p>\n

His estate, which school SNA Ms Flaherty now stands to inherit, is valued at \u20ac5.5million. Mr Mahon said Mr Grogan was diagnosed in early January 2023 with stage 4, aggressive , high grade non- Hodgkin\u2019s lymphoma.<\/p>\n

He said he had suffered infections after two of his four rounds of chemotherapy, and that Mr Grogan was said by his oncologist to be vulnerable due to the chemo and his significant weight loss<\/a>.<\/p>\n

He said Mr Grogan\u2019s death was due to a \u2018probability of infection\u2019, his immune system having been compromised. Mr Mahon said there were \u2018valid concerns\u2019 about Mr Grogan\u2019s care, but said it must be borne in mind that Mr Grogan was very reluctant to see a doctor.\u00a0<\/p>\n

He said it had been a very difficult and distressing case, and commiserated with both the Grogan and Flaherty families.<\/p>\n

Mr Mahon had ruled on day one of the three-day inquest that he would not make any decision about the validity of the marriage.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Earlier, Damien Tansey, barrister for three first cousins of Mr Grogan, Alo, Margaret and Se\u00e1n, called for the case to be referred to the Director of Public Prosecutions, for a forensic examination by the garda\u00ed.<\/p>\n

He told the coroner that it was open to him to record a verdict of unlawful killing, which he said could arise from omission or commission.<\/p>\n

In his closing submission, Mr Tansey said it was clear that Mr Grogan was very ill between April 5, when he finished his fourth round of chemotherapy, and April 15, when he died.<\/p>\n

\"The <\/p>\n

The barrister representing three of Mr Grogan’s cousins, Damien Tansey cast doubt over Ms Flaherty’s claims her late husband was suffering from inoperable, stage 4 cancer, as he dramatically declared: ‘None of that evidence is true or accurate’<\/p>\n

He said that without medical intervention during that period, the consequences could be \u2018dreadful\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u2018Was he properly treated during that ten-day period?\u2019 he asked. \u2018\u2026The only intervention during that ten-day period was to hurriedly and secretly arrange a marriage by which she [Ms Flaherty] stood to gain an estate valued at \u20ac5.5million.\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr Grogan\u2019s \u2018sudden and unexpected\u2019 death had caused disquiet in the local area and in the medical community, he said.<\/p>\n

He suggested that those concerns had not been assuaged during the three-day inquest.<\/p>\n

Mr Grogan\u2019s oncologist had testified that Mr Grogan\u2019s cancer was responding well to treatment, and the pathologist had confirmed that cancer had not been the cause of death, and neither was organ failure.<\/p>\n

Mr Tansey said the swift embalming procedure meant that the pathologist could not test for drugs in Mr Grogan\u2019s system. However, pathologist Charles d\u2019Adhemar had warned that if the three medications Mr Grogan had been prescribed were not administered correctly, it could depress his respiratory and nervous systems.<\/p>\n

The \u2018star witness\u2019 in the case, Lisa Flaherty, had repeatedly spread a narrative that Mr Grogan had an inoperable, stage 4 cancer and was at the end-of-life stage, awaiting palliative care, Mr Tansey said. \u2018None of that evidence is true or accurate,\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n

He also noted that she had told the inquest she had been in a long-term relationship with her neighbour Mr Grogan, when she had other partners, and three children who were not Mr Grogan\u2019s.<\/p>\n

\"Coroner <\/p>\n

Coroner Raymond Mahon (above) recorded a narrative verdict in the case of Mr Grogan<\/p>\n

Her suggestion that their relationship began when she was 16, which \u2018puts Joseph Grogan into the realm of being a paedophile\u2019 had caused great anxiety to the Grogan family, he said.<\/p>\n

He continued: \u2018The troubling issue in this case is the secrecy of the marriage\u2026 her own sister did not know about it until the following day. Her best friend did not know until the following day. And she put a notice on the door of the house saying \u201cNo visitors\u201d. What was that about?\u2019<\/p>\n

He said that less than 24 hours after the \u2018secret marriage\u2019 there was the \u2018unlawful removal of the remains from the house\u2019.<\/p>\n

Peter Jones, a solicitor representing Teresa Mooney, Mr Grogan\u2019s 90-year-old aunt, called for an open verdict, and for the garda\u00ed to investigate.<\/p>\n

He said the inquest had left \u2018an awful lot of unanswered questions\u2019. He also pointed to the \u2018undue haste\u2019 with which he said Mr Grogan\u2019s remains were taken to be embalmed, and to the contradictory evidence given by Ms Flaherty about Mr Grogan being at the end of his life, and awaiting palliative care.<\/p>\n

The Grogan family had been excluded during the \u2018reign of secrecy\u2019 of Ms Flaherty, he said. They had to learn of Mr Grogan\u2019s death from a friend, which he said showed \u2018cruelty\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u2018My client is concerned for justice for Joseph Grogan,\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n

\u2018Despite the best efforts of this inquest, we are no closer to knowing the way or circumstances of this death.\u2019<\/p>\n

He said there was a need to \u2018satisfy public disquiet\u2019, adding that most people on the street would be concerned to hear that a man had died the day after getting married, \u2018and was embalmed by teatime\u2019.<\/p>\n

Stephen Byrne, for Ms Flaherty, said Mr Tansey had all but accused his client \u2018of causing the death of the late Mr Grogan\u2019.<\/p>\n

He said he had been concerned that the inquest would be used \u2018to attack the good name and reputation of Ms Flaherty\u2019, and that this had proved to be the case.<\/p>\n

He said an inquest could only be adjourned for further investigations to be carried out on the basis of valid, legitimate suspicions, and said that threshold had not been reached.<\/p>\n

Other friends and family of Mr Grogan could have gone over the head of his carer, Ms Flaherty, and called a doctor themselves if they were concerned \u2013 but they did not, he said.<\/p>\n

Instead, he said, the person who cared for him and \u2018stepped up to the plate\u2019 had been \u2018hauled over the coals\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u2018It is easy for people who did not step up to the plate to instruct their lawyers to come in and criticise someone who did step up and take responsibility,\u2019 Mr Byrne said.<\/p>\n

Mr Grogan himself was reluctant to seek help or see a doctor, he said, and that was his own decision.<\/p>\n

\u2018He knew his own body, and he knew he was not going to beat this [cancer],\u2019 he said.<\/p>\n

Niamh Higgins, Ms Flaherty\u2019s sister and neighbour, told the court that she was a psychiatric nurse with an additional qualification in palliative care.<\/p>\n

She said her mother had called her early on the day of Mr Grogan\u2019s death, telling her that his condition was deteriorating, and that she had gone up to the house.<\/p>\n

\"Niamh <\/p>\n

Niamh Higgins, Ms Flaherty\u2019s sister and neighbour,\u00a0at Tullamore Court for the inquest into Mr Grogan’s death<\/p>\n

Mr Grogan was in bed, and appeared to be comfortable and not experiencing any pain or distress, she said.<\/p>\n

Ms Flaherty told her that she had called an ambulance at around 10.30am, as Mr Grogan\u2019s condition had rapidly deteriorated.<\/p>\n

She said she was told the paramedic had advised that palliative care in hospital would not be available until the Monday, and that Mr Grogan had said he wanted to stay at home.<\/p>\n

She said she advised her sister that the MIDOC doctor-on-call service should be called, and that Ms Flaherty agreed, but asked her to make the call, which she did at around midday.<\/p>\n

By this time, she said, Mr Grogan\u2019s pulse was irregular and weak, his breathing was shallow and he was less responsive. At 3.48pm, she said, she could no longer detect a pulse.<\/p>\n

Ms Higgins told the inquest that she learned of her sister\u2019s marriage after Mr Grogan\u2019s death.<\/p>\n

Mary Coyne, a friend of Ms Flaherty and Mr Grogan, said he had told her of his marriage on the morning of his death.<\/p>\n

She said that he had said, in a low voice, \u2018I have news, we got married.\u2019<\/p>\n

Se\u00e1n Grogan, a cousin of Joseph Grogan, from Naas, Co. Kildare, said that when he saw Joseph shortly before he died, his cousin had one eye closed, and one eye only half open.<\/p>\n

His head was leaning to one side, and he was limp, he said.<\/p>\n

He said that Mr Grogan had been a confirmed bachelor, who had previously had a 23 or 24-year relationship with a local woman, but had never expressed an intention to get married.<\/p>\n

P\u00e1draig Grogan, another cousin who ran a neighbouring farm and saw Joseph Grogan regularly, said he had been on holiday in the US when Mr Grogan died.<\/p>\n

He said his wife had sent text messages to Ms Flaherty to stay in touch, but there had been no response on August 14 or 15. They learned of Mr Grogan\u2019s death on RIP.ie, he said.<\/p>\n

He had understood that his cousin had inoperable cancer and that there was no hope in his final months, he said.<\/p>\n

\u2018I would have loved to have known then that his results were so good from the oncologist, and to make sure that he knew it,\u2019 he told the inquest. \u2018Joe wanted to live.\u2019<\/p>\n

Speaking following the verdict, Mr Tansey said that the focus of the Grogan family would now be on the validity of the marriage \u2013 which may involve a High Court challenge.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Martin\u00a0Keyes \u2013 a lorry driver, part-time undertaker and family friend \u2013 told the inquest he had taken the body to be embalmed just over four hours after Mr Grogan\u2019s death.<\/p>\n

He said he had been told by Mr Grogan\u2019s wife, Ms Flaherty that a doctor had released the body for the funeral.<\/p>\n

He agreed he had not seen a death certificate for Mr Grogan, who he had known since he was a child.<\/p>\n

He said he knew now, having attended the inquest earlier this month, that the doctor on call could not have given his consent for the body to be removed, as he was not Mr Grogan\u2019s treating GP.<\/p>\n

He also agreed that he had not reported the death to the garda\u00ed or the coroner on the day it happened, as was his legal responsibility.<\/p>\n

He said he was not a member of the Irish Association of Funeral Directors, the rules of which state an undertaker requires medical confirmation of death. He said he was not regulated by any organisation.<\/p>\n

\u2018Why did you remove the body with such indecent haste to be embalmed?\u2019 Mr Tansey asked him.<\/p>\n

He replied: \u2018There was no haste. It was about 7.30pm by the time I took Joe Grogan to Longford. He died at 3pm I think.\u2019<\/p>\n

Mr Tansey put it to Mr Keyes that Mr Grogan\u2019s death was \u2018sudden and unexpected\u2019 and the coroner had been sufficiently concerned to instruct the garda\u00ed to go to Mr Grogan\u2019s house and escort the body to the Tullamore mortuary for a post-mortem examination.<\/p>\n

Asked why he had gone to Longford, when the court had heard there were other, closer embalming services, Mr Keyes replied: \u2018That\u2019s who we use.\u2019<\/p>\n

He said the undertakers had not asked him for any paperwork.<\/p>\n

Mr Tansey asked: \u2018You know that embalming destroys tissues and so on in the body, such that it renders the post-mortem almost non-effective?\u2019\u00a0<\/p>\n

Mr Keyes replied that he did not know much about embalming before the inquest.<\/p>\n

He agreed that he now knew that the pathologist had been inhibited from finding the cause of Mr Grogan\u2019s death, and from determining if any drugs had caused his death. However, he said that what he had done was \u2018normal standard practice\u2019.<\/p>\n

Mr Keyes said he had attended about 100 funerals in the 15 years he had worked as an undertaker, but just two in 2023 before Mr Grogan\u2019s death, on Saturday, April 14.<\/p>\n

Mr Keyes said Mr Grogan\u2019s funeral had originally been arranged for the Monday, April 16, but that the date was put back following the coroner\u2019s intervention.<\/p>\n

He said he had been asked to be the undertaker for Mr Grogan by his father, who was a close friend of the deceased<\/p>\n

He said he had known Mr Grogan himself since he was a child<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A widow fled court in tears during a dramatic inquest where she was all but accused of causing…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":4159,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[97,519,49,50,51,47,52,48],"class_list":{"0":"post-4158","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headlines","8":"tag-dailymail","9":"tag-femail","10":"tag-headlines","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-top-news","13":"tag-top-stories","14":"tag-topnews","15":"tag-topstories"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4158","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4158"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4158\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4159"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4158"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4158"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4158"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}