An investigation is under way after the bodies of a man and a woman were discovered at a house in north Bray, Co Dublin, this morning.
The couple have been named locally as Bridgid ‘Biddy’ O’Brien and James McGinn, who lost their two young children in a house fire nine years ago.
Gardaí were called to a property in Cois Cairn at around 8am, where they discovered the body of Ms O’Brien, who was in her 40s, inside the house. The body of her partner, Mr McGinn, who was in his 30s, was found in the front garden.
The couple died in unexplained circumstances, with post-mortem examinations due to establish the causes of their deaths.
While Ms O’Brien does not appear to have suffered any violent injuries, Mr McGinn is understood to have died violently and had a number of injuries, including what appeared to be knife wounds.
However, gardaí have said there is no evidence at this stage of third-party involvement.
Detectives are keeping an open mind and following all lines of inquiry as they seek to establish the circumstances surrounding the deaths.
Ms O’Brien was seriously burned in a fire in Clondalkin in 2017, which claimed the lives of the couple’s children, two-year-old Jordan and four-year-old Holly.
The loss had a devastating impact on both parents, who subsequently struggled with substance abuse.
Mr McGinn later developed a cocaine addiction and was convicted after being found storing almost €200,000 worth of cannabis and cocaine for a drugs gang in a shed. A judge took the exceptional circumstances of his case into account when sentencing him to 18 months in prison.
Gardaí have established an incident room and appointed a senior officer to lead the investigation. Family Liaison Officers have also been assigned to support the bereaved families.
Investigators are appealing to anyone who may have information about the deaths to contact Dún Laoghaire Garda Station.
The exact circumstances of the couple’s deaths remain under investigation, pending the results of the post-mortem examinations.
Source: RTÉ
