'I WAS GOING TO WED ROY IN WEEKS ..NOW I HAVE TO BURY HIM' Fiancee's heartbreak at loss of perfect soulmate.Byline: EOIN EOIN End of Instruction REYNOLDS; KATHRYN HAYES THE devastated dev·as·tate tr.v. dev·as·tat·ed, dev·as·tat·ing, dev·as·tates 1. To lay waste; destroy. 2. To overwhelm; confound; stun: was devastated by the rude remark. fiancee of murder victim Roy Collins had been planning her wedding and a threemonth honeymoon in Thailand - now she is preparing to bury the love of her life. Heartbroken Melissa Crawford was just weeks from walking down the aisle with fiance Roy Collins when a gang of twisted thugs blasted away her dreams. Melissa, 23, said yesterday she will never be the same again as she looked at these snaps that now serve as painful reminders of the happiness taken from her. Roy's two girls, aged 12 and eight, were being consoled last night as they struggled to cope with the loss of their dad. Melissa said: "Roy was happiest when he was with me and the kids. He lived for those kids and would do anything for them. "It's just heartbreaking that this could happen. "It was love at first sight between us. He's such a handsome guy. We met in one of his family's pubs, he was working and I instantly fell for him. "We started going out and we have been living together for the past four years. We built our own house from scratch and we were preparing to get married." Roy, who was 35, proposed to Melissa during a holiday to Gran Canaria Gran Canaria is the third largest island of the Canary Islands, an archipelago located in the Atlantic Ocean 210 km from the northwest coast of Africa and belonging to Spain. It is located southeast of Tenerife and west of Fuerteventura. last May and they planned to get married this June. She said: "He brought me to a jewellery store and I noticed he was looking at the rings. He got the owner to take out a set of them and at the centre was the real ring. "He got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. He made me the happiest girl alive. "We were going to get married in a registry office registry office Noun Brit & NZ same as register office registry office n (BRIT) → registro civil; to get married in a registry office → in June and then go to Thailand for three months. HEARTBROKEN "In a couple of years, when we had enough money saved, we were going to have a big wedding in Spain. "Now all that is gone. Everything is gone. My life will never be the same again. He was a great father, a brilliant boyfriend and fiance. I'm absolutely heartbroken. It's like a nightmare." Melissa bravely vowed to see Roy's killers jailed, even though the murder may have been prompted by his family giving evidence against gangland thugs. She added: "All that is left now is to see justice for those who killed Roy. They can't get away with this. "But even if they get jailed, he will be gone for ever. It's very hard but we have to be strong." Roy was shot shortly after noon on Thursday while he was working at his business premises The Coin Castle Jackpot Arcade arcade, series of arches supported by columns or piers. An arcade may stand free; if it is attached to a wall it is called a wall arcade or a blind arcade. The earliest-known arcades were in Roman architecture, in which piers, ornamented with engaged columns carrying at Roxboro Shopping Centre in Limerick Limerick, city, Republic of Ireland Limerick, city (1991 pop. 56,083), seat of Co. Limerick, SW Republic of Ireland, at the head of the Shannon estuary. The city has a port with two docks. city. His grieving grieving Mourning, see there dad Steve yesterday described Roy's death as a "nightmare". He revealed that as he held his dying son in his arms, Roy gasped:"I love you dad, tell mam I love her." A tearful Steve spoke out yesterday claiming the killing was a twisted attempt in revenge for the jailing of thug Wayne Dundon, 30, in 2005. Dundon was jailed for seven years for threatening to kill Roy's cousin Ryan Lee. Ryan fell foul of the gangster when he refused to allow Dundon's then 14-yearold sister into Brannigan's bar in December 2004. Ryan, who was 19 at the time, was shot and wounded 30 minutes later when a gunman entered the pub. Steve said: "We thought we were doing the right thing, that somebody had to stand up to them, but you have to question whether you've done the right thing. "We never saw this coming. We were under Garda protection but the threat was always there to me, my family, my businesses and my staff. "All this is because we refused to serve a 14-year-old girl alcohol at 9.30pm." Steve couldn't answer when asked if he would be prepared to give evidence against criminals again. He said: "I don't know, we are so confused. We always questioned if we had done the right thing but it was a decision the family made and we felt bitter about what they did to Ryan." A month after the trial Steve's pub - Brannigan's on Mulgrave Street - was destroyed in an arson arson, at common law, the malicious and willful burning of the house of another. Originally, it was an offense against the security of habitation rather than against property rights. attack. On the day the jury was sworn in for the trial the father of four received an anonymous letter threatening his staff and family and reminding him of other victims of gun violence in city. The Collins family have been under Garda protection since the trial. Steve described his son as a hard worker who loved the daughters he had from a previous relationship. He added: "Roy was a lovely funny guy. A real family man who loved his kids and worked hard all of his life. We just can't believe it. It's a nightmare." "Ryan is our adopted son. His mum and dad died when he was 13. He has come along way since the shooting but he is just devastated by what has happened to Roy. They were like brothers." Last night gardai investigating the murder recovered two shotguns and around EUR EUR In currencies, this is the abbreviation for the Euro. Notes: The currency market, also known as the Foreign Exchange market, is the largest financial market in the world, with a daily average volume of over US $1 trillion. 60,000 worth of heroin during searches of homes and open ground in the south of Limerick city. CAPTION(S): HAPPY MEMORIES Melissa has a laugh with Roy on holiday GREAT BROTHER Roy with sister Leanne EMBRACE Enjoying a hug from one of his daughters CLOSE BOND Roy on night out with brother Stephen OUR HERO Getting thumbs-up from his daughters |
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