Padraig Nally, who shot trespasser John 'Frog' Ward on his Mayo ...

Mayo farmer Padraig Nally, who became the focus of a cause celebre in 2004 when he shot dead trespasser John “Frog” Ward, has died aged 81 following a long illness.

In November 2005, Mr Nally was sentenced to six years’ imprisonment for the manslaughter of Ward, a Traveller and father of 11 who had been trespassing on his farm near Lough Corrib on the Mayo-Galway border.

However, his conviction was quashed in October 2006 and, in a retrial two months later, he was found not guilty of manslaughter.

Supporters of Mr Nally and some local politicians welcomed the jury’s finding that the then 62-year-old farmer was not guilty of manslaughter, but Traveller support groups and Ward’s family expressed dismay at the verdict.

After being acquitted at the Central Criminal Court, Mr Nally told reporters, as he prepared to travel home from Dublin to his 65-acre farm, that he often thought of the man he had shot dead more than two years earlier and regularly prayed for him.

“I think of what happened all the time. It is always on my mind,” Mr Nally said.

Expressing sympathy with John Ward’s widow, Marie, and their 11 children, he said: “These 11 youngsters are now without a father. It is a big loss to them.”

Mr Nally, a bachelor, conceded that due to the national and international publicity over the incident, he was “now a celebrity”, but wanted “to live that down”.

“I know I am known all over Ireland. I got thousands of letters and many cards and Mass requests while I was in prison. Even while I was in Dublin, people came up to me on the street wanting to shake my hand,” he said.

Following his acquittal, Mr Nally settled back to farming. He was a regular at Maam Cross Mart.

Ward was a 43-year-old Traveller with approximately 80 convictions for burglary, larceny and assault.

At his first trial, Mr Nally said he had been unable to sleep properly after a number of farms in his area were burgled. His own home was broken into in 2003 and a chainsaw was stolen from one of his sheds.

Mr Nally’s counsel, Brendan Grehan, told the jury his client was “at the end of his tether, agitated and fearful, even paranoid about his safety”.

Solicitor Sean Foy, who represented Mr Nally during his trials, said on Friday he had learned of his death with “great sadness”.

“I called to see him some weeks ago and he was being cared for by his sister, Maureen, who was gallantly by his side through all his turmoil,” he said.

Preparations are being made, in keeping with relatives’ wishes, for what is being described as a low-key funeral.

Cong based Paddy Rock, who stood by Mr Nally during his trials, said “I have lost a good friend”.

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