A dead man was brought into a post office on Friday in a bizarre bid to collect his pension by two men now at the centre of a Garda probe.
The pair carried the remains of Peadar Doyle into Hosey’s on the Staplestown Road in Carlow.
Since the story started gathering legs on messaging app Whatsapp, it has gone on to dominate front pages and make international headlines.
Here's how it unfolded.
Friday - story breaks
The brazen duo propped the retiree’s corpse up on their shoulders, but a staff member quickly noticed the elderly man was ashen-faced and possibly dead and gardai were called.
The two men dropped the body of Mr Doyle on the floor when the worker raised her concerns and fled the scene.
One of the suspects had earlier walked into the post office and attempted to claim the pension of the elderly man who lived in a house in nearby Pollerton Road. However, he was told the only person who could receive the payment was Mr Doyle and it could not be collected by anyone else on his behalf.
It’s understood the pair then returned with the corpse and attempted to obtain his pension money.
It’s believed one of the scammers told a staff member: “Ah, he’s grand, we’re going to bring him down to the hospital when we get the money.”
A source said: “Gardai were alerted about an unconscious man being carried into a post office.
“The guards and an ambulance arrived at the scene where they discovered the man was dead.”
Gardai immediately preserved the scene and it was sealed off along with the deceased’s house which was being examined by the Garda Technical Bureau.
The coroner was notified and the State Pathologist was called to carry out a postmortem.
Saturday - town in shock as the story gathers pace
Speaking on Saturday night, Fr John Dunphy, who is from the neighbouring parish of Graiguecullen/Killeshin, told how he gave Mr Doyle the last rites.
He said he was on duty on Friday when he received a call from gardai saying the man’s remains had been left in Hosey’s shop in “shocking circumstances”.
Fr Dunphy added: “I’m not from the parish of Carlow town, but I was on duty and I got a call from the gardai asking me to come in.
“So, I made my way into the newsagents and the remains of the deceased was there with the staff and gardai around him. He was not alone.
“The shop was closed, and I didn’t know the man, but the staff were upset, naturally. He was anointed, he got the last rites, of course, and we all gathered around him and prayed. It was very dignified.
“The gardai were very kind and the staff were brave, it was a peaceful moment, very, very dignified.
“We all stood together and prayed over him. It was a short gathering, but it was peaceful and I would like to think the man is at peace.
“I don’t know how he died or anything like that, but the gardai are investigating and a postmortem will have to be done. It really is shocking, people in the town are clearly shocked but he did get prayers and he was anointed, and we stayed with him and prayed.”
Sunday - nephew of pensioner whose body he carried to collect pension attends his wake
The pensioner's nephew attended the wake on Sunday night.
The pair involved both made full statements to officers at Carlow Garda station and insisted the dead man had been alive when they left his home in Pollerton Road.
Neither of the men have been charged with any fraud-related offences.
Mayor of Carlow Councillor Ken Murnane said there was relief that the postmortem on Mr Doyle’s remains revealed there was no foul play.
Monday - 'he was alive'
Declan Haughney insisted that he didn’t realise Peadar Doyle, 66, was dead when he and another man brought him on the five-minute walk from his home on Pollerton Road, Carlow, to the Hoseys Post Office, to collect his pension last Friday morning.
Declan, 40, who says he’s lived with his uncle all his life, claimed he’s now “the talk of the town” and is being branded a “murderer” in the local community, ever since the sensational story emerged.
But he insisted he’s “not an eejit” – and believes he’s being accused of dragging his dead uncle into a post office to rob his pension – because he previously stole from his aunt.
He said: “Why would I want to rob my uncle? I’m 40 years of age yeah, I’m not a child, I’m not a young fella. I’m not an eejit to walk into Hoseys with a dead man and collect his money. Am I cuckoo? Am I cuckoo? I’m not.”
Monday - funeral takes place
Peadar was laid to rest in an emotional funeral service at the Church of the Holy Family in Askea on Monday morning.
The 66-year-old was buried in the nearby St Mary’s Cemetery by his heartbroken family after the mass.
