Wife-killer was 'monster in disguise as a husband'

The loved ones of a woman killed by her estranged partner have condemned her murderer as a "monster disguising himself as a husband".

Karen O'Leary was stabbed more than 60 times at her Leeds home on 25 April 2024, about seven weeks after she had left her husband, Dennis O'Leary, and asked him for "space".

An inquest on Monday concluded that Mr O'Leary, 61, had taken his own life by causing an explosion at the property, after he had dragged his 63-year-old wife's body upstairs and laid next to her on the bed.

In a statement after the hearing, Mrs O'Leary's daughter, Louise Staveley, and friend Anne-Marie Friel, said Mr O'Leary would have "died behind bars" had he lived.

The inquest heard how internet searches on Mr O'Leary's phone, dating from 3 February that year, included disposal of a body and methods of killing.

Det Sgt Bethany Smith, of West Yorkshire Police, who led the investigation into the deaths, said the searches showed an "element of pre-planning" and that "he was considering ending Karen's life".

In a joint statement issued after the Wakefield Coroner's Court inquest, Ms Friel and Mrs Staveley said: "Dennis O'Leary lured Karen to the house where he had meticulously planned her brutal murder.

"Dennis can only ever be known as a narcissistic murdering monster disguising himself as a husband, dad and one of the lads.

"No-one had a clue what level of violence he was capable of, had he lived he would have died behind bars for pre-meditated murder."

The inquest heard that Mrs O'Leary, who had married Mr O'Leary in 2011, had left the Oakwood home the couple shared to stay with her daughter.

Det Sgt Smith said that phone messages showed him being "derogatory" towards his wife before their split.

After their break-up, he continued to contact her, despite her requesting he did not, and that his messages became "more intense" as the weeks progressed.

Det Sgt Smith said the former upholsterer and printing technician had branded his wife a liar and "appeared to be very controlling". He seemed "unwilling to accept her decision to end the relationship and leave the address," she added.

Medical evidence read to the court showed Mr O'Leary had confessed anger management issues to health professionals on more than one occasion during their marriage.

It was said that while he insisted he was not violent, he had admitted in 2017 "grabbing" his wife's arms on two occasions during arguments.

It was said before the incident Mr O'Leary was seen filling up a petrol canister, which was found by officers after the attack.

The inquest was told Mrs O'Leary had agreed to meet her former husband on the day of her death to discuss their "next steps" and that her daughter raised the alarm when she did not return as expected.

The statement from her daughter and friend added: "The only positive in this horrendous time is knowing he is rotting in hell exactly where he belongs."

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