Gardaí appeal for witnesses to Waterford stabbing

Gardaí in Waterford investigating the fatal stabbing of a 28-year-old man in the city on Saturday morning are appealing to two young women who were in the Park Lane Apartments on John's Lane between 3am and 4am on Saturday morning and who may have witnessed the incident to contact the incident room at Waterford on 051-305300, the Garda Confidential Line 1 800 666 111 or any Garda Station.

The victim was fatally stabbed in Waterford just hours into a “purple flag weekend” aimed at promoting the city as a safe and vibrant place to socialise.

The victim, understood to be from the Co Wexford area, was pronounced dead in hospital after emergency services found him on a city centre street just after 3.20am on Saturday morning.

A member of the public had alerted gardaí to an “altercation” which took place on New Street between the victim and another man. On arrival at the scene, gardaí found that the 28-year-old had been stabbed. It is believed that he is from Wexford and was socialising in Waterford on Friday night.

He was taken by ambulance to University Hospital Waterford where he was pronounced dead.

A 35-year-old man, who is understood to be a non-Irish national who lives in Waterford, was arrested near the scene of the crime and is being held for questioning by gardaí at Waterford garda station.

The row happened around the corner from John Street, which leads to the main thoroughfare in Waterford’s city centre.

The location is a few hundred metres from O’Connell Street where a man in his 40s was injured when he was stabbed during an incident at about 6.45pm on Thursday. He was treated in hospital for injuries described as “non-life threatening”. A man in his 20s was arrested.

Waterford is this weekend celebrating “purple flag weekend” which involves businesses, the local council and Chamber of Commerce highlighting the city’s designation of a purple flag area last year by the Association of City and Town Management.

According to the council, the designation recognises “a good quality evening and night-time economy, where people can enjoy a safe night out in a pleasant environment”.

Mayor of Waterford, Cllr Adam Wyse, offered his condolences to the young man’s family .

He urged witnesses to contact the gardaí.

“Anyone who could have seen anything or who knows anything about it should contact the guards and let them know any information,” Cllr Wyse said.

The mayor added that people should not be put off socialising in or visiting the city. “This is not a regular thing that happens in Waterford.”

Gardaí sealed off a section of New Street and a technical examination of the scene was carried out on Saturday and a postmortem took place at University Hospital Waterford.

A case conference was held at the local garda station and the investigating team have appealed for anyone with information to contact the station at 051-305300 or the garda confidential line on 1800-666111.