A convicted murderer who was released early from prison due to his reportedly respectful demeanor has been found guilty of killing his great-uncle in a frenzied knife attack just a year after his release.
Direece Roche, 30, was sentenced to life in prison in 2011 for fatally stabbing a man outside a New Year’s Day party. Despite his violent history, he was released on parole in 2023 after serving the minimum 12 years of his sentence. Prison reports had described him as “polite,” “mature,” and possessing “wisdom beyond his years.”
However, in July 2024, Roche broke into the Manchester home of his great-uncle, Fintan McDwyer, and stabbed the 64-year-old grandfather 71 times as he lay in bed. McDwyer’s body was discovered five hours later by his son, who had been away for a family wedding.
Roche, who wore a balaclava and dressed in black during the attack, was convicted this week and now faces a second life sentence. He is due to be sentenced in July.
Nicola Carter, Senior Crown Prosecutor for CPS North West, said:
“Direece Roche planned and carried out the brutal murder of his own relative. He tried to conceal his identity and has failed to take full responsibility for his actions.”
McDwyer, a widower whose wife passed away 20 years ago, had a range of health problems, including type 2 diabetes, depression, back issues, and the absence of a spleen.
In a family statement, loved ones described him as “a gentle giant” with “a calm and reassuring presence,” adding:
“There isn’t anyone who would say a bad word about Fintan. It breaks our hearts that he has been denied more time with his sons and grandchildren.”
During the trial, the jury was informed of Roche’s previous conviction. At age 16, he had fatally stabbed care worker Adam Steele, 23, during a street altercation in Salford in 2011. At the time, Roche and his older brother, Owen, were known locally as “The Krays” due to their violent reputations. The judge in that case said Owen had “failed” his younger brother and contributed to his path toward violence.
Although Roche initially exhibited violent behavior in prison, including assaults on staff and inmates, he was later praised for his apparent rehabilitation. He cut ties with his brother, engaged in therapy, and expressed interest in studying psychology. By 2019, however, a High Court judge still considered him a risk, and parole was denied. He was later transferred to an open prison in Lancashire.
In May 2023, while on day release, Roche was caught carrying a lock knife, yet was still granted parole that September.
The most recent murder was captured on CCTV, showing Roche walking through Manchester in the early hours of the morning before breaking into McDwyer’s home through an upstairs window. He then launched the violent attack, severing the victim’s jugular vein and inflicting dozens of wounds to the face, neck, and body.
Roche claimed in court that he had been sexually abused by McDwyer as a child and had broken into the house only to steal his dog, named after Roche’s late mother. He alleged the killing was spontaneous and that McDwyer had confronted him with a knife.
The jury rejected his account, and prosecutors described his defense as “a carefully constructed, completely false story.”
