GARDAÍ WERE still searching last night for the assailant who killed a shopkeeper during a robbery in Arklow, Co Wicklow, on Wednesday night.
Father of two John Deasy was stabbed to death when he confronted a man who demanded money from a female assistant at Brauders shop.
The raider entered the shop on the Coolgreaney Road at about 8pm with the intention of robbing it, Supt Pat Ward of Arklow Garda station said yesterday.
The shopowner, in his living quarters upstairs, heard a commotion and came down to the shop through the front door. He met the raider at the door and sustained a fatal stab wound in a tussle, gardaí said yesterday.
Attempts to revive Mr Deasy by ambulance personnel and a local doctor failed and he was pronounced dead at the scene. In his mid-40s, he was a father to two daughters.
The female assistant was “badly shaken” as a result of the incident, Supt Ward said. The raider escaped and ran down St Peter’s Place. Gardaí are unsure where he went subsequently.
Gardaí have described the raider as 193cm (6ft 4in), athletic and fairly thin. He was wearing light clothing, possibly a windcheater and a balaclava. He may have been covered in blood, Supt Ward said. They did not know the man’s nationality or age group, and his accent was nondescript.
The sum of money stolen was in the hundreds and not thousands of euros, Supt Ward said, adding the man could have been acting with someone else or alone, but that so far there were no suspects.
Garda sources said it appeared the stab wound was very deep and that Mr Deasy had been stabbed through the heart. The weapon was most likely a knife, but could have been another weapon such as a screwdriver.
A postmortem was being conducted yesterday.
Gardaí were hoping to review CCTV footage for clues. Assistant Garda Commissioner Dermot Jennings is working with Arklow gardaí on the case.
A large area around Brauders shop in the west of the town was cordoned off yesterday and at least half a dozen bouquets of flowers were laid beside the cordon.
Locals were shocked at the death of the well-known man, who moved to the area from Co Wexford over 15 years ago. He was a rugby fan and was active in the Arklow chamber.
Nearby shopkeeper Pat Kelly said the news was “sheer horror”. Mr Deasy always had “a smile on his face, treated everyone the same, was an obliging man and a good comrade”. His stomach was “still churning” over the death. Shopkeepers in the area, including Mr Kelly, had been robbed and threatened many times in recent years, he said.
Dermot Doyle, a butcher based near Brauders, said he was “devastated”, as “you couldn’t meet a nicer guy”. Mr Deasy had kept to himself and had worked very long hours. “People are disgusted at what happened and don’t think it will happen on their own doorsteps,” he added.
Fianna Fáil councillor Pat Fitzgerald said there was “an air of gloom around the town”.
Gardaí are asking anyone with information to contact them at (0402) 32304.