She had been forcefully smothered by her partner Paul Plunkett, who shoved his hands over her nose and mouth during an argument. In both cases, Plunkett killed to silence a petite, vulnerable woman. During the attack on August 15 last year, Plunkett smothered Barbara at her home on William Street during a row. After killing his partner, Plunkett left her body, got into a taxi with a "wad of notes" and headed to his daughter's home. "Plunkett has a number of historic convictions for violence against women, including the manslaughter of a previous partner, Jacqueline Aspery, in 1996.

Source: Daily Mirror February 22, 2019 13:18 UTC