Lucan stabbing was a personal dispute, gardaí say

Gardaí believe a man stabbed to death in Lucan, Co Dublin, was attacked because of a personal dispute.

A 19-year-old suspect, who was well known to the dead man, is being questioned. The teenager presented himself for questioning in the hours after the fatal stabbing.

He is being questioned at Ronanstown Garda station under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act. Detectives can question him for up to 24 hours without charge.

A spokesman for the Garda said his period of detention had been extended by a further six hours. After that, the teenager will have to charged or released. If he is charged, he is likely to be before the courts on Friday morning.

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The arrested man is the only suspect in the case, and gardaí are not seeking anybody else.

The victim, named locally as Bryan Cassidy, was 52-years-old and is believed to have been stabbed at his home on Buirg an Ri Walk, Balgaddy, Lucan.

Gardaí are working on the theory he survived for a time after the attack and was making his way to a nearby house where his partner lived.

However, as he attempted to seek help he succumbed to his injuries and died on the street.

The dead man's home and the nearby scene where he died have both been sealed off as crime scenes. They were being examined by the Garda Technical Bureau on Thursday.

Gardaí were alerted to the incident just before 10.30pm on Wednesday night, and efforts were made to revive the victim. His body remained at the scene overnight pending the arrival of a pathologist to carry out a preliminary examination.

A full post-mortem is expected to be completed on Thursday. Garda sources said it was not until the results of the post-mortem became known that a decision would be made on whether to upgrade their suspicious-death investigation to a murder inquiry.

Ruth Nolan, an independent councillor in the area, said she was “shocked and dismayed” at the incident.

“The area is in shock, for this to happen under people’s noses at half ten at night. Knife crime is just out of control at the moment. The majority of people around there are decent people who just want to live their lives in peace. It’s just a small element, but nobody wants to see this in their area.”

Gardaí have appealed for witnesses who may have been in the area at the time of the incident or have information to contact them at Lucan Garda Station on 01-666 7382 , the Garda Confidential Telephone Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station.