Image shows demolition work unde way at Co Meath house built without permission at the centre of a 20-year-long legal battle. RollingNews.ie RollingNews.ie

THE DEMOLITION OF a Co Meath home at the centre of a 20-year long planning dispute has begun, with heavy machinery and diggers tearing through parts of the house.

Back in 2006, Rose and Michael Murray (also known as Chris) were denied planning permission for a dormer bungalow in Faughan Hill in Meath, close to Navan.

Despite this, they built a property on the site that was twice the size of the proposed bungalow that was refused planning.

Diggers and heavy machinery arrived on the site today and an aerial shot showed the side of the house being torn into.

Digger and workmen at scene of house in Co Meath at centre of 20-year-long legal battle RollingNews.ie RollingNews.ie

Much of yesterday’s work had involved cutting off services to the property and securing the site, with the erection of two CCTV towers.

Rose Murray appeared on RTÉ, Newstalk and local station LMFM yesterday to discuss the issue.

She told LMFM that she and Chris were being treated like “two convicted criminals” and added: “I’m going to be arrested for sleeping in my bed for the last 20 years.

“I can’t get on a plane because I’m going to be arrested and sent off to Mountjoy, for sleeping in my own house.”

Gardaí told the High Court earlier this week they had been unable to locate the owners of the house after orders were issued for their arrest over an alleged failure to vacate the property by September 2022 and facilitate its demolition.

Digger tearing through roof of house to be demolished in Co Meath RollingNews.ie RollingNews.ie

Murray added on LMFM: “We did wrong 20 years ago – we’ve held our hands up and said we did wrong, we were trying to rectify the situation for years but no one would listen to us, no one will negotiate with us.”

While at one point during the LMFM interview, she said she was ready to bring the saga to an end and “move on to the next chapter in life”, she later said she would “hang on until the bitter end and fight for it”.

Diggers and workmen at scene of house in Co Meath RollingNews.ie RollingNews.ie

A neighbour yesterday told The Journal: “They’re a good family and everyone thinks it’s disgrace the way they’ve been treated.

“I know what they did, everyone knows what they did, but there was some conclusion they could have come to instead of this, it’s terrible to see this happening.”