Gardaí upgrade inquiry into woman’s death in Dundalk to murder as victim named locally

The 62-year-old woman, named locally as Catherine Henry, was found with serious injuries at a property on Bridge Street, Dundalk, on Wednesday evening.

She was pronounced dead at the scene which was later sealed-off as gardaí began carrying out inquiries into the fatal incident.

Her body remained at the property overnight and was subsequently removed to a local mortuary where a post-mortem was conducted on Thursday afternoon by the Office of the State Pathologist.

This has since been completed and as a result of this examination gardaí have now upgraded the inquiry to a murder probe.

One source told Independent.ie: “Gardaí had already committed the resources of a murder investigation to this incident prior to the post-mortem, and the results have now confirmed garda suspicions.

“The serious injuries she suffered were caused by a third-party and several lines of inquiry are being pursued.”

“No arrests have yet been made but enquiries are ongoing in order to progress the investigation,” the source added.

Gardaí in Dundalk are continuing to appeal for any witnesses who were in the area on Wednesday to contact them.

Following the discovery of Ms Henry’s body the scene was preserved to facilitate an examination by the Garda Technical Bureau.

A family liaison officer has also been appointed to the deceased’s family, who are being kept updated on the garda inquiry.

Investigators have been conducting door-to-door inquiries as part of the probe while detectives are also canvassing the area to harvest CCTV footage.

One line of inquiry is that Ms Henry was the victim of a violent assault by a man known to her.

The Cathaoirleach of Louth County Council, Dundalk Fianna Fáil Councillor Conor Keelan, said the tragedy is being felt in the community.

“What can I say but it’s a tragic occurrence for a lady to be discovered in such a fashion. Our thoughts and sympathies go to her family and friends in the locality. I’d like to extend my sympathies to all those who knew her at this very sad time. It’s a tragic shock for her family and friends what has occurred,” he said.

“There have been a number of tragedies in both Dundalk and Drogheda over the last day or two, so we would just like to extend sympathies to all those affected.”