Rozanna Purcell has stepped away from the spotlight of beauty pageants and into the shadows of Irish true crime. The model, born 3 September 1990, who won Miss Universe Ireland 2010 and represented her country at the Miss Universe competition that same year, now lends her voice to one of Ireland's most troubling unsolved cases.

Purcell narrates and hosts *Stolen Sister*, a six-part RTÉ Documentary on One podcast series released in 2025. The production focuses on the murder of Elizabeth Plunkett, a 23-year-old woman abducted, raped, and killed on 28 August 1976 in Brittas Bay, County Wicklow. What makes this case extraordinary—and Purcell's involvement vital—is a legal paradox that has haunted Elizabeth's family for nearly five decades: the men who confessed to her murder were never convicted of it.

The killers were John Shaw and Geoffrey Evans, Englishmen described as Ireland's first serial killers. Both were career criminals, recently released from prison and wanted for rape in Britain when they committed their Irish crimes. They abducted, raped, and murdered Elizabeth Plunkett, and approximately one month later, her body washed up on a beach in County Wexford.

Shaw and Evans did not stop. They struck again, abducting, raping, and murdering Mary Duffy, a 23-year-old woman from Mayo. Following a nationwide manhunt, the two men were arrested. They faced charges of murder, rape, and false imprisonment related to both Elizabeth Plunkett and Mary Duffy. Both received life sentences—likely for Mary Duffy's murder. But Elizabeth Plunkett's case never reached conviction.

The family's discovery of this legal failure came shockingly late. In 2022, while reviewing John Shaw's parole application—Shaw is the State's longest-serving prisoner—Elizabeth's sisters Bernie and Kathleen Plunkett learned that despite their sister's killers' confessions, no conviction existed for her murder.

After nearly 50 years of silence, the sisters decided to speak. In July 2024, they contacted RTÉ Documentary on One following unsuccessful appeals to the Director of Public Prosecutions, Garda Commissioner, and State Solicitor's Office. The family wrote to the DPP, Garda Commissioner Drew Harris, and Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan requesting a cold-case review and renewed public appeal.

Purcell's role in *Stolen Sister* reflects her commitment beyond pageantry. The model and charity worker hopes the podcast will generate new leads for justice—a realistic goal given that the case has been largely dormant in public consciousness for decades. The series sheds light not only on Elizabeth Plunkett's fate but also on a pattern of predatory violence. Podcast reporting has uncovered accounts of other attempted abductions linked to Shaw and Evans, including one woman who escaped by running across fields to a friend's house, and another who was chased in Galway.

The podcast represents a significant moment for the Plunkett family. Bernie and Kathleen are using their voices, amplified by Purcell's platform, to demand accountability from a system that allowed their sister's killers to confess yet escape conviction for her specific murder.

As *Stolen Sister* reaches international audiences, Purcell's involvement underscores a modern truth crime reality: sometimes the highest-profile figures become advocates for the lowest-profile cases, ensuring that unsolved murders—and the legal failures surrounding them—do not disappear from public memory.

**Sources**

https://extra.ie/2025/06/15/news/roz-plea-plunkett

https://www.rte.ie/culture/2025/0526/1515075-stolen-sister-the-new-true-crime-podcast-from-doc-on-one/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rozanna_Purcell

https://about.rte.ie/2025/05/30/stolen-sister-a-new-podcast-series-from-rte-documentary-on-one/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BfkehnByTwQ