Man in his 50s arrested in Audrius Butkus death case

A man in his 50s has been arrested by gardaí investigating the murder of 44-year-old Audrius Butkus, a Lithuanian national, whose body was discovered on a beach at Mornington, Co Meath, on September 10th last.

The man was arrested yesterday evening in the Drogheda area and is being detained at Drogheda Garda station under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984.

A man and woman were also held last month in connection with the murder and subsequently released.

The man in his 50s and a woman, aged in her 60s, were detained in the Drogheda area on September 12th and later released and a file was to be prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions. A second woman in her 30s was also arrested and released without charge at the time.

Mr Butkus had lived in Ireland for four years and was of no fixed abode. He had spent time in the Homeless Aid shelter in Drogheda. He was known to gardaí for minor public order offences.

He was found with serious injuries to his head and upper body. Gardaí believe he was assaulted in Drogheda prior to his partially clothed body being dumped on Mornington beach.