Teenager released without charge over fatal hit-and-run of student

A TEENAGER who was arrested on Sunday in relation to the fatal hit-and-run of Joe Drennan, a talented and award-winning student at University of Limerick, has been released without charge.

According to a statement by gardaí: "the man in his late teens, arrested in relation to the fatal road traffic collision on the Dublin Road in Castletroy, Co. Limerick, on October 13 2023, which resulted in the death of a man in his 20s, has been released without charge."

A file is being prepared for the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) and investigations are ongoing, the statement continued.

Joe was waiting for a bus on the Dublin Road in Castletroy, Limerick on the evening of October 13 after finishing work in a nearby restaurant when he was fatally struck by a vehicle that had just been involved in a collision with another vehicle, as well as an alleged interaction with Gardaí earlier that night.

The 21-year-old from Knocknagad, Mountrath, Co Laois, was a talented fourth-year UL journalism student.

Dr Kathryn Hayes, course director of the BA Journalism and Digital Communication at UL paid tribute to Joe as "an inspirational student and a hugely talented young journalist, who had a bright career ahead".

"He was passionate and creative and will be sorely missed by all of us who had the pleasure of knowing and working with him."