Man arrested in connection with assault at house in Cork

Gardaí have arrested a man for questioning after an assault in Cork which left another man in a critical condition in hospital with serious head injuries.

Gardaí from Gurranebraher received a report of an attack at a house in the Blarney Street area of the city's northside at about 1.30am on Thursday.

When they arrived at the house they found a Croatian man in his 20s with serious head injuries and he was rushed by ambulance to Cork University Hospital (CUH).

The man had been hit a number of times on the head by an assailant armed with an iron bar after a row broke out in the rented house.

It is understood the injured man is in critical condition at CUH where he is in an induced coma in the hospital's Intensive Care Unit.

Gardaí at the scene spoke to witnesses and called for back up. Armed members of the Regional Support Unit arrived and began a search of the area.

Members of the Regional Support Unit found a Nigerian man in his 20s armed with an iron bar a short distance from the house. They subdued him after a brief struggle.

The man was arrested under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act which allows gardaí hold suspects for up to 24 hours and he was taken to Gurranebraher Garda Station for questioning.

It is understood there were four men in the two-storey house at the time of the assault and gardaí have taken witnessed statements from two other men, both from eastern Europe.

Meanwhile, Garda technical experts carried out a forensic examination of the scene and door-to-door inquiries have begun in the area.