Gardaí investigating the hit-and-run killing of a 54-year-old woman after a robbery in Dalkey, south Co Dublin, have arrested three suspects.
The men being question are in their 20s and were being held at Dún Laoghaire and Dundrum Garda stations. They were being questioned under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act which allows for their detention without charge for 24 hours.
The three men were arrested on Wednesday morning as gardaí continued the investigation of the serious crime, despite the special policing operation now in place to on response to the Covid-19 crisis.
Gardaí believe the men were in the vehicle driven up onto a pavement before hitting and fatally injuring Jacqueline McGovern.
Ms McGovern, the married mother of three adult children from Killiney, died following the incident on the night of Tuesday, March 10th. She worked as a special-needs assistant at Our Lady of Good Counsel Girls National School in Cabinteely.
The victim was out walking with a friend, also in her 50s and a special needs assistant, when they were hit by the car. However, while the second woman was injured she survived and is recovering.
In the moments before the fatal collision two men threatened staff at a Centra store on Barnhill Road, Dalkey. They stole money before being driven away at speed by another man in a waiting car.
The fleeing driver appeared to lose control of the vehicle at the junction of Ballinclea Road and Avondale Road, Killiney, where the women were struck. The site of the crash was about 1km from the robbery scene.
Ms McGovern was taken from the scene by ambulance to St Vincent’s hospital, where she was later pronounced dead. The car used by the raiders was so badly damaged in the crash it could not be driven any further.
The raiders fled the scene on foot and gardaí have since examined the car in a bid to find forensic evidence that may link those responsible to the crime.
