993) Patrick J. Whelan

Patrick James Whelan (1840 – 1869). Suspected Fenian sympathiser executed following the 1869 assassination of Irish journalist and politician Thomas D'Arcy McGee.
He maintained his innocence throughout the proceedings, but the government needed somebody to blame, and although the evidence against Whelan was entirely circumstantial, he was "the perfect candidate". Questions about his guilt continue to be voiced, as his trial was "marred" by political interference, dubious legal procedures, allegations of bribing witnesses and easily discredited testimony.
Whelan was born in Ireland, County Galway, and moved to Quebec in 1895, where he worked as a tailor. 

- " It garnered a great deal of publicity in Canada and abroad, with newspapers referring to Whelan as “the tailor with the red whiskers.”  https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/…/patrick-james-whel…

- "Whelan was a red-haired tailor's assistant..."  https://books.google.it/books…