Two murder probes launched over new year
Patrick Post Murder A Following Mortem, Gardaí Browne Has The Now Picture: Investigation Menced
Two murder investigations are underway following the violent deaths this week of a man and a woman, both aged 58.
Gardaí in Wexford launched a murder probe on New Year’s Day after a post mortem showed that New Ross man John O’Connor died as a result of an assault.
It followed the decision of gardaí in Athlone on New Year’s Eve to commence a murder investigation into the violent death of Mirjana Pap, whose body was found dumped in a ditch in Co Roscommon on Monday.
Mr O’Connor was found unresponsive at his home in New Ross at 11am on Tuesday morning and was pronounced dead shortly after. He appeared to have suffered an assault beforehand.
Two men, both aged in their 30s, were arrested on suspicion of assault, one following the discovery of the body and the second later in the evening.
Officers were not certain if the assault caused the death and waited for the post mortem to confirm.
Once it was completed, Garda HQ issued a statement: “A post-mortem examination was carried out by the State Pathologist earlier today and preliminary results have been provided to the investigating team. Details of these results are not being released for operational purposes. Following the post-mortem, An Garda Síochána has now commenced a murder investigation.”
It said that one of the men arrested remained in custody while the second male has been released: “A male aged in his 30s, arrested in connection with the investigation remains in Garda custody at this time. He is detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984 at a Garda Station in the Eastern Region. The second individual arrested has been released from the provisions of Section 4 and is no longer being held in connection with this investigation.”
It said an examination of the house in New Ross by the Garda Technical Bureau was continuing.
In Athlone, gardaí are trying to track a vehicle they suspect the body of Ms Pap was transported in, from her home in Athlone before being brought to a rural area in Curraghaleen, Co Roscommon, and dumped in the ditch in farmland.
Ms Pap, a Croatian national, has been living in Athlone for over 20 years.
Detailed DNA and forensic analysis is being conducted on the suspected car in a bid to find evidence that the bloodied and beaten body of Ms Pap was carried in the vehicle and possible evidence of her attackers.
The mother of grown-up children was reported missing by her family to gardaí on Saturday.
Garda inquiries took a turn when a man, who was known to the victim and who was arrested on a completely separate matter, provided specific information on the location of her body.
While no arrests have yet been made, gardaí are understood to have identified suspects.
A Garda statement said: “They [investigating gardaí] are particularly interested in the movements of a silver 08G registered Peugeot 207 on Saturday 28th of December 2024 between 11am and 12noon. The car is understood to have travelled from Beechville estate, Athlone onto the N6 motorway (west bound) from junction 11 to junction 13 before continuing on the R362 from Monksland to Bealnaulla.
“Motorists who travelled along these routes within this timeframe are asked to provide Gardaí with dash-cam footage”.