Man found dead outside Monaghan hotel ‘did not die from his head injuries’

Gardaí investigating the death of a man whose body was found outside a hotel in Co Monaghan were last night awaiting the results of toxicology tests to determine the cause of his death as they do not believe his head injuries were fatal.

The remains of the man, a 25-year-old who had come to Ireland seeking international protection, were found outside the M Hotel near Carrickmacross at about 8am on Tuesday. He had sustained a head injury and all of the resources of a homicide inquiry have been committed to the case.

However, while the results of a postmortem examination on his remains have not been released by the Garda, The Irish Times understands it concluded the man’s head injuries did not cause his death. Those injuries remain unexplained and while detectives have not ruled out foul play in the man’s death, they suspect he may have fallen and injured himself.

Gardaí were called to a disturbance at the hotel on Monday night, Halloween, and when they arrived at the scene the situation had calmed and no arrests were required. Detectives have now established the dead man was one of those involved in that incident. However, when the man left the hotel, and during the last confirmed sighting of him alive, he had no head injuries.

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Gardaí are hopeful the results of toxicology tests will shed further light on the cause and circumstances of his death, though they believe a number of factors may have combined to bring it about. Sources said it was likely the dead man was knocked out when he sustained his head injuries in a fall or an assault, which has yet to be determined. They suspect his being injured and losing consciousness may have combined with the effects of laying outside in cold weather, and with the impact of intoxicants he had consumed, to bring about his death.

The same sources stressed the presence and quantity of intoxicants, including alcohol and any other substances, in his system would only be determined by the toxicology tests. And it was only when those test results were available that a clearer picture would emerge of the man’s condition around the time he sustained his head injuries.

The dead man had been staying at the hotel as his application for international protection was being processed. He was found dead in a grassy area beside the perimeter wall of the hotel on the Kingscourt Road at Lossets on Tuesday morning.

A statement issued by Garda Headquarters, Phoenix Park, Dublin, on Wednesday evening said the cause of the man’s head injury remained “unexplained” after the postmortem by State Pathologist Dr Heidi Okkers. It added gardaí in Carrickmacross were appealing for anyone who was at or passing the hotel on Monday night or into Tuesday morning to come forward.

It is understood the man, who was from Africa, has been identified, though he was not being named until gardaí had contacted more of his family members.

Meanwhile, residents of the emergency accommodation for asylum seekers in the hotel were in shock and fear over the death “in unexplained circumstances” of a young man who had been staying at the facility, a local councillor has said.

Colm Carthy – a local Sinn Féin councillor who attended the scene at the M Hotel on Wednesday morning – has called for gardaí to release details about the death as soon as possible to allay their concerns.

Mr Carthy said there are around 50 residents living at the hotel, which has been used as emergency accommodation for those seeking asylum over the past three years.

It is believed the dead man was 25 years old, of African origin and had been living at the centre for “only a week or so”.

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Mr Carthy said the hotel is “generally used as a first port of call, for temporary emergency accommodation, for overspill from direct provision centres, when the system is at capacity. It is not generally used for those living in the country for a long time”.

Mr Carthy said it was a “tragedy” for such a young man to die. “I’d like to express my condolences to his family and friends and the residents in the centre who are coming to terms with this tragic death,” he added.

“And also to those in the wider community. It is a very quiet rural community, and people living there have spent the last 24 hours speculating as to what happened. It is important we get details now.”