Wife says husband poured boiling water on her and attacked her with claw hammer

Olivia Kelleher

A woman has spoken of the horror of being asleep in her bed after a night out, only for her husband of 40 years to attack her with boiling water and a claw hammer.

Mother of three, Jackie Twomey on Thursday told Cork Circuit Criminal Court that “her life changed” forever on January 15th, 2024, when her husband Noel “brutally assaulted” her in her bedroom.

In a victim impact statement, which was read into evidence Ms Twomey (63) said that Noel Twomey came to her bedroom armed with a kettle of boiling water and a claw hammer and attacked her with both.

“It was beyond cruel and evil what he did to me. He poured the boiling water on me and hit me a number of times over the head with the hammer. He didn't seem to care about the damage he was doing to me. I thought I was going to die.

"I remember the pain and screaming. I couldn't believe what was happening. I was in CUH for six days and needed a lot of follow-up care. That was the physical side. The psychological trauma is worse. I don't think I will ever be the same person as I was before that night.”

Mr Twomey of Carbery Grove, Knocknaheeny in Cork, pleaded guilty to two counts of assault causing harm to his wife Jackie on January 15th, 2024.

One of the counts was for pouring boiling water on his wife, whilst the second was for hitting her with a claw hammer.

Ms Twomey said that, arising out of the traumatising incident, she is afraid of “going to bed.”

“I was going to bed and I fear just sleeping. The nightmares return every night, the pain and memories are there all the time,e but worse at night. It’s hard to put in words how my life has changed and the anxiety and terror that have become part of my life.

"I should have been safe asleep in my own bed.

"I have a very supportive family and friends who are 100% behind me. I hope I get peace someday and be happy, but that possibility seems far away. I need that evil man to be gone for good.”

Ms Twomey thanked gardaí, paramedics, the staff at CUH and her own doctor for their help following the incident.

“I never thought I would be in a courtroom reading a victim impact statement, I never thought my life would change so much or that I would be living with ongoing physical and psychological pain.

"I could write about what the days were like after the attack, trying to recover, but it is still the fear inside me now that's taking over at night. I do hope I get peace sometime in the future.”

Meanwhile, Dt Garda Michael Dolan told Judge Dermot Sheehan that Mr Twomey was arrested at 5am on January 15th, 2024 at Bakers Road in Gurranabraher in Cork after he flagged down a patrol car.

He said that Ms Twomey had gone to sleep in the safety of her own bed at around 3.30am, having arrived home from a social occasion.

Det Garda Dolan stated that Mr Twomey made the very conscious decision to boil a pot of water on the stove and to retrieve a claw hammer from his toolbox.

Det Garda Dolan said that Mr Twomey “considered his actions for a short period” and then entered his bedroom where his wife was sleeping. He then hit her in the head a number of times with a claw hammer and poured the boiling water over her.

Dt Garda Dolan said that Mr Twomey later described the movements of his wife from that night. He had watched the CCTV system that was on the exterior of the property.

Det Garda Dolan said that Mr Twomey expressed surprise that he was able to jump up and leave the property following his offending behaviour.

He also left the property and flagged down a patrol car. He was visibly soaked in blood and in possession of a blood-stained hammer in a plastic bag.

Ms Twomey was treated in intensive care following the incident.

A medical report was furnished to the court today, which indicated that Ms Twomey still suffers from “obvious scarring” to her scalp arising out of the attack.

She has a 3.5cm scar on her scalp, and when she was hospitalised there was concern that her extensive burns could lead to sepsis.

Doctors say that Ms Twomey narrowly avoided a serious cranial injury. She suffers from PTSD arising out of the incident.

Defence barrister Seamus Roche, SC, said that his client made admissions to gardai which were “detailed and florid.” He also wrote a letter of apology to his wife. The 63-year-old accused has a diagnosis of depression and ASD.

Judge Sheehan further remanded Mr Twomey in custody until June 26th next to allow for the preparation of a psychiatric report in the case.