A fifth man has been arrested in relation to an alleged prison assault which is believed to be connected to an arson attack which left two people dead in Co Offaly.
Four-year-old Tadgh Farrell and his grand-aunt Mary Holt (60) were killed when a firebomb was thrown through the window of Ms Holt’s front room in Edenderry on the evening of December 6th.
Gardaí suspect the involvement of a local drugs gang and believe the incident may have been triggered by an assault in the Midlands Prison in Portlaoise hours before the attack.
One line of investigation is that associates of the man who was assaulted ordered the arson attack in revenge.
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A number of searches have taken place in relation to both the assault and the firebomb attack. These include searches in the Midlands Prison for contraband mobile phones which may have been used to order the firebomb attack.
Recordings of external calls made by prisoners on official phones have also been reviewed.
On Tuesday, gardaí arrested a man aged in his 20s in relation to the prison assault. He is understood to have links to the Holt family and he is not suspected of involvement in the arson attack.
The suspect has several criminal convictions, including for drug offences.
He is being detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 at a Garda station in the eastern region, gardaí said.
The investigation is being led by officers from the Serious Crime Unit in the Laois/Offaly Garda division.
Last week, four other prisoners were removed from the Midlands for questioning in relation to the assault.
They were later released from Garda custody and returned to prison.
[ Funeral of Tadgh Farrell (4) hears mother’s tribute to ‘my sweet little boy’Opens in new window ]
