Coroner to raise concerns of mother of teenager who died after concert with 3Arena management

Seán McCárthaigh

A coroner is to write to the organisers of events at the 3Arena in Dublin to share the concerns of a mother whose teenage daughter collapsed and died after attending a rave at the venue on St Patrick’s Night two years ago.

Aoibhe Martin-Quinn (17) from Willow Drive, Clondalkin, Dublin 22, died shortly after midnight on March 18th, 2024, at the Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, where she had been rushed by ambulance after becoming unresponsive after leaving a concert by techno DJ, BLK, just before 11 pm.

An inquest into her death at Dublin District Coroner’s Court heard the results of a postmortem showed the teenager died from acute MDMA (ecstasy) toxicity, which had triggered a fatal cardiac arrest.

Drugs

It heard how several friends of Aoibhe, ranging from 14 to 17 years, told gardaí how they had consumed a variety of drugs, including ecstasy, ketamine and fast gas (nitrous oxide) as well as alcohol over several hours before and during the concert.

Evidence was heard that the teenager had brought drugs into the venue, concealed in her bra.

Aoibhe’s mother, Sarah Quinn, expressed concern at the hearing on Thursday that there had been no change in the organisation of such events at the 3Arena since her daughter’s death.

Quinn said she had been contacted recently by another woman whose son had died after attending the same venue.

“It would be sad to see any more children lost in the same way when that could be prevented,” she told coroner, Aisling Gannon.

Her comments followed evidence from a senior garda who described the scene outside the 3Arena before the blk. rave, which was attended by thousands of teenagers, as “chaotic”.

Staffing levels

Detective Inspector Ken Hoare said staffing levels by the event organisers “may not have been quite appropriate.”

Sergeant Brian Clerkin said gardaí had been briefed in advance of policing the concert that there had been several incidents at similar events in the 3Arena previously with people trying to force their way into the venue and some others jumping between levels inside in the arena.

Outside the venue, Sgt Clerkin recalled seeing one security supervisor becoming “irate and aggressive” as she dealt with a large group of teenagers waiting to get into the venue with some jumping over barriers to avoid the queue.

“It appeared she was becoming overwhelmed by the situation,” said Sgt Clerkin.

He gave evidence that gardaí outside the venue, which included members of the public order unit, had to intervene on several occasions to prevent “a crush situation” as the queue was “not being managed well.”

Sgt Clerkin noted that several concertgoers had tried to storm a door that would get them access to the building.

After the rave was over, he described coming across a girl, whom he now knew was the deceased, lying on a footpath and helping her to sit up.

Sgt Clerkin said Aoibhe and another girl with her had both declined medical assistance.

After they were joined by other friends, he said he left the group but had advised Aoibhe that she should seek medical help if her condition changed.

Written depositions from Aoibhe’s friends, which were read out by a court registrar, detailed how the group had pre-planned the drugs they were going to consume on the day of the concert.

Members of the group described how they met up in one of their homes from around midday, where some, including the deceased, inhaled some “fast gas” from balloons and took some ketamine as well as drinking cans of Four Loko before taking ecstasy later that evening.

Online contact

The inquest heard they had bought the ketamine from an online contact who met them in Bawnogue, Clondalkin, while the group had travelled into the city centre two days before the rave to buy 10 ecstasy tablets for €50 though an Instagram account with a dealer handing over the drugs to them near the ILAC centre.

One teenager recalled how Aoife complained of feeling warm and sick inside the 3 Arena before she vomited behind her seat.

However, he said she did “not look in a bad way at all” the last time he saw her before they got separated leaving the concert.

He told gardaí that the group of friends had all agreed that they would never take drugs again after hearing Aoibhe had died.

Another friend described how she had immediately flushed the drugs she still had down a drain after hearing the tragic news.

Another teenager said she had left the concert with Aoibhe who fell down outside and could not get up and was “not making sense.”

The inquest heard she was attended by Order of Malta volunteers before paramedics arrived on the scene and began CPR before placing her in an ambulance.

Supplier

In reply to questions from the coroner, Det Insp Hoare said gardaí had arrested a suspect for selling the ecstasy tablets to the group.

However, Det Insp Hoare said the DPP had directed that there should be no criminal prosecution due to insufficient evidence.

He said gardaí had not received any information that there was any particular risk with that batch of the drug.

Det Insp Hoare said gardaí had not identified the supplier of the ketamine, while nitrous oxide is not an illegal drug, as it is sold for other purposes.

Asked about the management of the concert, he said gardaí had subsequently raised with the management of the 3Arena the appropriateness of hosting an event which would attract up to 10,000 young people on St Patrick’s Night.

He pointed out that Garda resources are already stretched on what is traditionally their busiest day of the year when people have been celebrating throughout the day.

However, Det Insp Hoare acknowledged that gardaí do not have a veto over what events are held at the venue or any role in staffing levels at the 3Arena.

He told the coroner he was unsure if gardaí had a role over the licensing of such concerts.

However, Det Insp Hoare said gardaí had made it “quite clear” to the 3Arena management the difficulties posed from a policing perspective in holding such events on St Patrick’s Night.

He praised Aoibhe’s friends for their candour in assisting gardaí before adding: “They’re a good bunch of kids and it was a terrible tragedy.”

Aoife’s body was formally identified to gardaí in the Mater by her father, Garrett Martin,who died last April in a second tragedy for her family.

Recording a verdict of death by misadventure, Gannon said she would write to the management of the 3Arena “in a neutral way” to draw their attention to the concerns raised by Martin.

The coroner said she was glad the inquest was able to be concluded just before Aoibhe’s second anniversary and offered her condolences to the teenager’s relatives who attended the inquest.