A man who swam across the river Liffey in Dublin after being attacked, and later died from his wounds, has been remembered by his sister as a “free spirit” who touched the lives of everyone he met. Thomas Griffin (31), from Ballyfermot, was assaulted in the vicinity of the War Memorial Gardens in Chapelizod on the night of Saturday May 30th last.He swam across the Liffey to the Chapelizod Road side and was treated by paramedics from the Dublin Fire Brigade. He was taken to hospital but died the following day. Griffin’s funeral was delayed to allow a postmortem to be carried out. Speaking at the funeral service at the Church of the Most Holy Sacrament in Cherry Orchard, Hannahrose Griffin said her brother Thomas loved horses and his family were very proud of his accomplishments as a jockey.Thomas Griffin died after trying to escape attackers by jumping in the river Liffey She said he was also been a talented boxer, fighting out of St Matthew’s Boxing Club in Ballyfermot. “He had the strength and courage to know that when life knocks you down, you get up,” she told mourners. “It is difficult to describe what he meant to so many people. Thomas was my protector, my best friend and my tormentor. He was loved beyond all measure by our parents.” Hannahrose said the family’s “hearts are broken” over the loss of a person who had “touched so many lives”. “He was an extraordinary uncle and a loyal friend. He left a space that can never be filled,” she added. “His free spirit is what he was and will always be. He will be forever unforgettable.“Thomas had a way of making people feel happy, his laugh was contagious.” Parish priest Fr Michael Murtagh recalled celebrating the first anniversary Mass of Thomas Griffin’s brother, James. The 26-year-old was fatally wounded in a stabbing incident at a rave in a disused unit at Park West Business Park, Dublin in November 2014. His attackers, who were never caught, fled the scene in a taxi.“I’m very much aware of the pain and bereavement the family felt,” Murtagh said. The priest thanked friends and family who turned out for Thomas’s funeral, saying their presence “was a prayer”. The chief mourners were Thomas Griffin’s parents Gerard and Rose, his brothers Ciarán and Gerard, his sister Hannahrose, his sons Daylin and Cavalli-James, stepson Fletcher and Cavalli’s mother, Nicole.