Gardaí were last night expected to upgrade their investigation into the death of a 45-year-old Latvian man in Co Tipperary to a murder inquiry as they continued to question a suspect about the killing.
Acting State Pathologist Dr Linda Mulligan was due to make her findings known to gardaí late last night after carrying out a postmortem on the body of the deceased at University Hospital Waterford.
The man had been brought to the hospital in Waterford on Saturday night after suffering a stab wound when a row broke out with another man at a party at his apartment at New Quay in Carrick-on-Suir, Co Tipperary.
The row happened at about 11.30pm and the man underwent emergency surgery at the hospital. He died there early on Monday morning.
Gardaí are not releasing the man’s name until all next of kin in Latvia are notified but it is understood he had been living in Carrick-on-Suir for about 14 years and was working locally in the agricultural sector.
Fatal stabbing
A 44-year-old Lithuanian national is still being questioned about the fatal stabbing. He was arrested at his home elsewhere in Carrick-on-Suir in the early hours of Sunday morning.
The suspect, who was known to the deceased, was arrested and taken to Clonmel Garda station where he was detained under section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, which allows gardaí hold suspects for up to 24 hours.
The man’s questioning was delayed for a number of hours following his arrest early on Sunday as he was deemed not fit to be questioned. However, gardaí spent most of Monday questioning him about the fatal assault.
Detectives also began taking witness statements from at least four others who were in the apartment at New Quay at the time of the fatal assault as well as carrying out door-to-door inquiries in the area.
They also began harvesting CCTV footage from around Carrick-on-Suir as they try to piece together the movements of both the deceased and the suspect in the hours leading up to the fatal assault.
Gardaí also cordoned off the scene and Garda technical experts began a forensic examination of the apartment, but gardaí would not be drawn last night on whether they had recovered any knife or weapon.
Anyone with information in relation to this incident has been asked to contact Clonmel Garda station on 052 617 7640.
