THE DUBLIN city coroner has urged Polish people who are “living rough” and who have concerns to speak to the Garda.
Dr Brian Farrell made the call at an inquest into the death of a Polish man who drowned at George’s Dock at the IFSC in April 2008.
Piotr Gajda (39), of no fixed abode, was found floating in the water by a painter working on a nearby pub on April 11th.
The father of two, from Warsaw, was severely intoxicated at the time of his death, Dublin City Coroner’s Court heard yesterday.
Garda Conor Horan of Store Street station told the inquest that it wasn’t unusual to find bodies of Polish men in the area.
He said many Polish men came over to work and when they were unable to find a job or were made unemployed, they became homeless and took up drinking.
When one of them died, “some panic. They don’t seem to know what to do and they dump the body in the river,” Garda Horan continued.
This did not happen in the case of Mr Gajda, the inquest heard. CCTV footage showed him walking near the water on his own in an intoxicated state. There were no suspicious circumstances.
“I think we should be reassuring Polish people who are living rough that if they have any concerns they should come forward to the gardaí and they will be treated sympathetically,” Dr Farrell said.
He recorded a verdict of death by misadventure.