Gardaí arrest man (28) in wake of Waterford woman’s death

Gardaí investigating the murder of a woman (31) in a flat in Waterford city have arrested a 28-year-old man for questioning about the death.

Detectives arrested the man about 3pm on Sunday afternoon after he was discharged from University Hospital Waterford where he had been treated for a suspected drugs overdose.

The man was taken to Waterford Garda station in Ballybricken where detectives began questioning him about the death of a young mother, Samantha Walsh, from Larchville in Waterford.

Gardaí had been keeping an open mind on the death of Ms Walsh, but a postmortem on Saturday afternoon by Deputy State Pathologist Dr Michael Curtis confirmed she had been assaulted.

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Detectives have not released the results of Dr Curtis’s postmortem for operational reasons, but it is understood that Ms Walsh may have been dead for several hours before her body was found.

The body of Ms Walsh was found in a bedroom of a flat at Thomas Court on Thomas Street at about 3pm on Friday by paramedics who responded to an emergency call by a man at the flat.

Seriously ill

They found the 28-year-old man in a seriously ill condition after taking a suspected drug overdose and he was taken by ambulance to University Hospital Waterford for treatment.

They found Ms Walsh dead in the bedroom and they immediately notified gardaí who cordoned off the scene and began an investigation into the circumstances of her death.

The man was arrested under section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act which allows gardaí detain suspects for up to 24 hours before they have to be charged or released.

Supt Chris Delaney issued an appeal to the public for assistance, in particular to anyone who was in the Thomas Street area late on Thursday night or early on Friday morning to contact gardaí.

Supt Delaney said investigating officers were anxious to speak to anyone who saw or heard anything unusual in the Thomas Street area to contact them at Waterford Garda station on 051-305300.

It is understood that Ms Walsh was mother to several young children. But they were not with her at the time of her death.

Gardaí have also begun door-to-door inquiries in the Thomas Street area and have begun checking CCTV in the general Ballybricken area in an attempt to establish when Ms Walsh was last seen alive.