Media mogul Tony O’Reilly dies

Anthony O’Reilly, the Dublin native who became CEO of ketchup maker HJ Heinz Co and once one of Ireland’s richest men, has died. He was 88. O’Reilly also had an illustrious career as a media owner having first bought into Independent Newspapers – now Independent News & Media Plc – in 1973. Fin24 reports that the company eventually assumed control of newspaper titles and radio stations across the globe, including the Independent newspaper stable in SA. ‘It is with great sadness that I have learned of the death of Tony O'Reilly,’ Ireland’s Prime Minister Simon Harris said in a statement Saturday. He said O'Reilly 'was a giant of sport, business and media and left permanent legacies in all three'. A former international rugby player who enjoyed a flamboyant lifestyle, O'Reilly helped lead Heinz for about three decades while he amassed a personal fortune. The Sunday Times ranked O'Reilly as Ireland’s second-richest man in 2007 before soured investments cost him much of his fortune.

Full Fin24 report