Police raid newspaper over McAreavey crime photos

Mauritian police today searched the office of a newspaper that published photographs of the murdered body of Michaela McAreavey.

Acting on orders from the police commissioner, detectives searched the premises of the Sunday Times in Port Louis, the Mauritian capital. No arrests were made and no items were recovered, a police spokesman said.

The newspaper, a small title founded late last year, carried a black-and-white picture of the Co Tyrone teacher, taken after she was murdered, on its front page last weekend. It also published a number of other images showing her injuries and the hotel room where her body was found.

The publication of the photos drew an angry response from the Government and was described by the McAreavey and Harte families as "reprehensible and repugnant".

Despite the criticism, the newspaper said it stood over its decision to publish the photos.

Jimmy Jean Louis, a senior journalist at the paper, said it ran them to remind people of the fact that nobody had been brought to justice for the Irish woman’s murder.

“In these difficult times, our newspaper has acted responsibility… I say to the family, we shall only be at peace when the murderers are brought to justice, whoever they might be,” he told The Irish Times.

Asked whether he believed it insensitive to publish the pictures, Mr Jean Louis said: “It is not the first time that the local press published those kinds of photos. There are other cases.”

“My answer to you is that… as a responsible newspaper, we must see to it that the murder of Michaela Harte does not go unpunished.”

“We stand over the decision we took and we want justice to be done for Michaela.”

A lawyer representing the McAreavey and Harte families in Mauritius, Dick Ng Sui Wa, called for the arrest of whoever was responsible for the leaking of the crime scene photographs.

He said their publication could hinder any future police inquiry into the killing, as it would give possible suspects a glimpse of the crime scene.

Mr Ng Sui Wa said he was encouraged after a meeting with the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) on the issue, and was confident the police inquiry into the leak would proceed quickly. He said he did not believe police leaked the photos.

Two hotel workers, Avinash Treebhoowoon (32) and Sandip Moneea (43) were acquitted last week of the murder of Michaela McAreavey, who was strangled at Legends Hotel while on honeymoon with her husband John last year.

Barrister Sanjeev Teeluckdharry, who represented Mr Treebhoowoon, condemned the publication of the pictures “in the strongest possible terms” and called for an inquiry into the matter. “It’s unethical and most improper for any newspaper, be it local or international, to publish these photos,” he said.

Mr Teeluckdharry said a number of people would have had copies of the photos, including investigating police officers, the police photographic department, jurors and barristers.

The Mauritian DPP has indicated a new inquiry into the McAreavey killing could be opened if there were new leads or information to justify it, but Mr Ng Sui Wa said he did not hold out much hope for this, and pointed out that the two men acquitted last week cannot be tried for second time.

Lawyers for the two acquitted men are due to hold a press conference later this week to disclose what they claim is new evidence of shortcomings in the police inquiry into the killing.

Separately, Fianna Fáil's spokesman on justice Niall Collins called for a senior Garda investigator be sent to Mauritius to review the files relating to the murder.

"There are serious questions surrounding the investigation into Michaela McAreavey’s death and I believe that the Irish public would welcome direct intervention by Irish investigators to better understand what has gone wrong," Mr Collins said.

"The terrible mismanagement of this case from the beginning has only added to the grief and heartbreak of the Harte and McAreavey families."

Mr Collins asked that Minister for Justice Alan Shatter bring the matter to Cabinet tomorrow and that he discuss with Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan the possibility of sending a senior Garda investigator to Mauritius to review the case files and to meet those involved in the unsuccessful prosecution.