Prisoner critical after attack in Mountjoy Prison, another dies by suicide

Gardaí are investigating an attack in Mountjoy Prison, Dublin, that has left a man in a critical condition after he was slashed or stabbed in the throat. The Irish Times understands the man, who is in his 30s, was among a group of protected prisoners in an exercise yard in the north Dublin jail on Monday evening when the attack occurred.

In an unrelated incident, another prisoner in the jail died by suicide in the early hours of Monday morning. That deceased man, who was in 40s and had served a number of sentences, was found unresponsive in his cell at about 3.30am.

The Irish Prison Service confirmed there was “a death of a person in the custody of the Irish Prison Service” on Monday and that next of kin had been informed.

“This death in custody will be investigated by the Irish Prison Service, the Inspector of Prisons and An Garda Síochána, where circumstances warrant. The cause of death is determined by the Coroner’s Office,” the Irish Prison Service said in reply to queries.

Election campaigns well under way as Ming pips the first televised debate

---

‘It’s nice to have Europe on your doorstep but rent is absolutely ridiculous here’

---

A Wee Poem

---

They say ‘Dublin 1 is for the far-right’ and threaten to kill a politician, yet Ireland ignores the threat

---

In response to queries about the unrelated attack on the other prisoner who survived being slashed or stabbed on Monday evening, the prison service said it “does not comment on individual prisoner cases”.

When the prisoner was attacked on Monday evening, prison officers rushed to his aid and applied pressure to his neck to stem the loss of blood from his wounds. Paramedics arrived at the prison and stabilised the victim at the scene before he was taken to hospital, believed to be the Mater hospital, where he remained in critical condition on Tuesday.

A Garda investigation has commenced into the attack, which informed sources said had the force of an attempt to kill the victim. It is understood a dispute broke about among the protected prisoners in the B exercise yard in the prison, with three officers rushing to the wounded man’s aid and administering life-saving assistance.

Protected prisoners are those who are accommodated with each other in the same wing of a jail, away from the general prison population, for their own safety.

Gardaí have identified a number of prisoners who were present at the time of the attack and are pursuing a definite line of inquiry. It is suspected the attack could be linked to a dispute over drugs in the jail, though sources stressed the investigation was at an early stage.

In reply to queries, Garda Headquarters, Phoenix Park, Dublin, confirmed they were investigating a violent attack at the jail on Dublin’s North Circular Road.

“Gardaí are investigating an assault on a man in his 30s that occurred on the evening of Monday, August 7th, at Mountjoy Prison in Dublin,” the Garda said in reply to queries.

“The man is currently receiving treatment for serious injuries at a Dublin hospital. Investigations into this matter are ongoing.”

Informed sources said as the prison estate had become more overcrowded in recent years, tensions in the jails had increased. There had been more disputes over the supply of drugs, and between drugs gangs, which often resulted in fights and attacks.