Fury as woman branded 'gold digger' after marrying wealthy farmer a day before he died

Friends have jumped to the defence of a woman who was branded a "gold digger" after marrying a wealthy landowner one day before he died of cancer.

Lisa Flaherty, 50, stands to inherit a 220-acre farm, which is valued at €5.5 million (£4.7 million), as Joseph Grogan's widow. However, his inquest last week heard none of the 75-year-old man's relatives attended the wedding, as they were unaware the couple were even in a relationship.

Speaking after the inquest at Offaly Coroner's Court in Tullamore, County Offaly, Mr Grogan's family lawyer claimed the hearing had left "an awful lot of unanswered questions" and the circumstances of Mr Grogan's death could only be challenged by trained personnel used to investigating "suspicious deaths." The coroner had, though, rejected calls to refer the death for a detailed forensic investigation.

Amid the war of words, Ms Flaherty's friends and family have argued she and Mr Grogan "were very much in love". Ms Flaherty became the farmer's part-time carer towards the end of his journey with Stage IV Non-Hodgkin lymphoma, a form of blood cancer, with which he was diagnosed in 2023.

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Ms Flaherty, who has three grown-up children from a previous marriage, moved in with her partner in Screggan, County Offaly, and they became engaged. Mr Grogan died on April 15, 2023, one day after he married Ms Flaherty.

"The world can think what it wants but how Lisa has been portrayed is not right. They were both wonderful people who were very well respected in this community. Lisa didn’t care for Joe because she wanted his money, that’s total rubbish," Joe Keys, who was one of Mr Grogan’s best friends, said this week.

And a close friend of Ms Flaherty told Mail Online: "I’ve known both all my life and I can promise you, they were very much in love. They were committed to each other, nobody cared for Joe like Lisa did, not even his own family. The two of them were inseparable.

"She’s the one who was beside him throughout his life and when he needed her most, as he was dying. She did an amazing job, and it wasn’t for financial reasons, Lisa is not that sort of person. She’s one of the most loving and kind people you could ever meet."

While giving evidence at the inquest, Ms Flaherty indicated that her relationship with Mr Grogan started when she was a teenager. She had to leave the room several times as proceedings became too emotional for her.

Mr Grogan, who had no children of his own, was embalmed within hours of his passing, making it virtually impossible to determine a definite cause of death. Others in the tiny village of Screggan, who knew the farmer, said he was very much a father figure to Ms Flaherty's son and two daughters growing up.

Another friend said: "Lisa was very young when she first met Joe, but it wasn’t a big deal, she was above the legal age of consent and there was nothing paedophile about his intentions. It was the start of a loving, caring relationship that continued for many years."

Mr Grogan's family insist the "police need to investigate" his death. However, the coroner delivered a "narrative verdict" which is an account of the circumstances surrounding a death rather than a direct ruling as to its cause.