Father and son face charges after two brothers injured in Cork stabbing

Two injured men in serious but stable condition and gardaí hope to take statements from them when doctors deem them fit to be interviewed

Gardaí have sealed off the scene of the incident in Dunmanway, Co Cork. Photograph: Bryan O'Brien
Gardaí have sealed off the scene of the incident in Dunmanway, Co Cork. Photograph: Bryan O'Brien

A father and son are due to appear in court on Monday after they were charged on Sunday night in connection with an incident in west Cork at the weekend in which the father’s two other sons suffered serious stab wounds

The incident happened at a farm near Dunmanway at around 7pm on Saturday when the emergency services were alerted and found two brothers, aged 35 and 32, with serious stab wounds and paramedics worked to stabilise them before removing them to hospital.

One man had suffered a severed artery and was bleeding profusely and was airlifted by helicopter to Cork University Hospital, while the second man had suffered a punctured lung and he was rushed to CUH by ambulance by road.

Both injured parties underwent emergency surgery at CUH on Saturday night and while both remain in a serious condition, Garda sources on Sunday said that they were now in a stable condition and gardaí hope to take statements from both men when doctors deem them fit to be interviewed.

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Meanwhile, gardaí arrested the injured men’s father, who is in his late 70s, and their younger brother, who is 31, at the scene for questioning and both men were conveyed to Bandon Garda Station where they were being questioned on Sunday night.

However, the Garda Press Office confirmed in a statement at 10pm on Sunday that both men had been charged in relation to the incident and would appear at a special sitting of Bantry District Court in west Cork at 2pm on Monday.

Gardaí sealed off the scene at the farmyard two kilometres from Dunmanway town and a scene of crime team carried out a technical examination of the area, while they also recovered a knife which they believe was used in the stabbing and it has been sent for forensic examination.

Investigators believe the alleged assaults on the two older brothers are part of the latest episode in a long-simmering family feud going back years relating to a dispute over an inheritance where the three brothers ended up as co-owners of a yard and shed attached to a farm.

Barry Roche

Barry Roche

Barry Roche is Southern Correspondent of The Irish Times