Vigil to remember Adina will take place on Friday
The death of Adina Raluca Constantin, who was in her 50s, has caused immense shock and sadness for her family and friends. Family photo.
A VIGIL is due to be held in Portlaoise for Adina Raluca Constantin, who was the victim of a fatal assault in the town on Sunday 5 July.
The vigil will take place in Memorial Park on the Ridge Road at 6pm on Friday, 17 July.
Niamh Ryan is one the co-organisers of the vigil. A resident of Portlaoise for 17 years, Niamh had previously organised a vigil in the same park for Ashling Murphy, the 23-year-old primary school teacher who was murdered in broad daylight.
“It was just something that I saw nobody else had done and so I had organised it on my own back”, she says.
Niamh wanted to organise a similar vigil for Adina because “there has been a lot of outcry … and just pure and utter shock that this has landed on our doorstep”.
She spoke to members of the community across various social media platforms and arranged to meet some of them. On 9 July, she met with Collette Doocey, Oonagh Duggan, cllr Caroline Dwane Stanley, as well as Adina’s sister Dana, and her best friend Adriana. They decided to arrange a vigil in Adina’s memory.
“We want to do this very respectfully, in memory of Adina and along with her family, to show her family that there is support there for her, for them, and that the community are behind them” says Niamh.
According to the Women’s Aid Femicide Watch for the Republic of Ireland, eight women have died in violent circumstances so far in 2026. This number overtakes the recorded figure of seven women for the entirety of 2025.
The Women’s Aid Femicide Watch shows that, in cases that have been resolved, 87 per cent of women killed were killed by a man known to them. On Tuesday 7 July, Adina’s husband, Eugen Constantin (72), was charged with the murder of his wife.
A day after Adina’s death, the body of Jamey Carney was found in Killarney. She too had died in violent circumstances. Gardaí continue to investigate her death and are trying to locate a suspect who fled the country, who they believe was known to the victim.
“I'd be very happy if people go home [from the vigil] and begin that conversation in their home. If they tell 10 more people, that's another community, another family, who starts that conversation … and hopefully does something about this.
“We want to show the community, show her family, that we're pulling together, and that no other person needs to go through this, and we want to involve media because we want to have these national conversations; to show that, whether it's happening in our community or in another community, that there are links, there is support, there is help out there for people who may have faced the same or is facing the same situation.”
Niamh hopes that, through the vigil, people will begin to understand Adina beyond the headlines. “Adina was a daughter, a sister, a friend, a coworker, a neighbour, a community member”, she says.
Originally from Romania, Adina had lived in Portlaoise for approximately 15 years. “In that time, she really settled into the community”, says Niamh.
“She always had a smile for people who passed her by, and she would always say hello, even though she was a shy person. She was always upbeat and positive, regardless of everything that that she faced.
“She was a lovely, friendly, warm person … It has been a great loss to Church Street and to those who knew her and worked with her, and especially her family.” Niamh and her vigil co-organisers ask that people bring battery-operated candles instead of real candles when attending the vigil.
A GoFundMe appeal, entitled 'Adina Raluca Constantin', has also been launched by Adina’s family, to repatriate her remains to her native Romania.
Appeal organiser and family member Ioan Olimpiu said: “We are devastated by this unimaginable loss. During this incredibly difficult time, we are facing significant financial challenges in covering the costs of her funeral and repatriation.
“We want to give Adina the dignified farewell she deserves and bring her home to rest with her loved ones. Any contribution, no matter how small, will help ease the financial burden on our family and will be deeply appreciated … Thank you for your kindness, generosity and support during this heartbreaking time.”
