Tom Niland lies in a grave in west Sligo. The grave faces the majestic Ox mountains. Behind it is the Atlantic Ocean.

The only child of Roger and Molly Niland, the late farmer is buried with his parents in the well-tended St Mary’s cemetery in Skreen, located about a 25-minute drive west of Sligo town.

The words on the gravestone are the only giveaway to the brutal manner of the 75-year-old’s death, at odds with the serenity of his resting place: “Died, 30th September 2023. Tragically, following a violent assault.”

Niland grew up in the nearby townland of Doonflin. He lived and worked around his home area all of his life. A tall man, he was remembered as a hard worker, helping his father on the family’s farm and, from his teens until his retirement, on the substantial farm of his neighbours, Mary and Gordon Kilgallen.

Tom Niland was buried alongside his father Roger and mother Molly in St Mary’s cemetery in Skreen. Photograph: Bryan O’Brien

For his family and the close-knit rural community he lived in, the quiet bachelor farmer was as much a fixture of their local landscape as Knocknarea, the imposing hill where Queen Medb’s cairn stands on the summit.

The violent assault that ultimately cost him his life almost two years later occurred in his home of 30 years, obtained from the local council after his family home, an old stone cottage across the road, fell into disrepair.

Niland loved this second home, a small modern bungalow with stunning views