The Mainer accused of killing and dismembering an Irish farmer was assaulted in prison this week.
Michael Kelley, 53, had two black eyes when appeared via videoconference in Tralee District Court on Wednesday, according to the Irish Star.
His attorney told the Irish Star that two cellmates attacked Kelley, prompting officers at Cork Prison to intervene. He’s since been moved for his safety.
Kelleyn was arrested in February, nearly a year after the disappearance of 56-year-old Michael Gaine, who was last seen alive on March 20, 2025, in a local shopping center, according to An Garda Síochána, the Irish national police and security service. He was reported missing the next day.
Police made a grisly discovery on May 16, 2025, when Gaine’s dismembered remains were found in a slurry spreader on his farm after the machine jammed. His DNA was found in nearby fields, where the slurry was spread.
Police detained a suspect in his 50s on May 18, 2025, but released him the next day without charge.
Although Irish police didn’t publicly identify the suspect at the time, Kelley told numerous Irish media outlets that he was the suspect questioned in Gaine’s disappearance, but denied any involvement in his death. Instead, he proposed a slew of theories that organized crime was involved and that he was being framed.
Before Gaine’s death and disappearance, Kelley had been living in Ireland for seven years, including three years on Gaine’s 1,000-acre farm in Carrig East in Kenmare, where Kelley lived in exchange for working the land.
Before moving across the Atlantic, Kelley lived in Waldo County, according to the Irish Times.
Kelley was a private in the U.S. Army and was stationed in Germany as a guard. He later left the military as a conscientious objector during the first Gulf War, according to the Irish Mirror.
Kelley was ordered to remain in custody for at least another two weeks, according to the Irish Star. He has been jailed since his arrest.
BDN writer Kasey Turman contributed to this report.
