Foul play ruled out in Galway charred body case

Gardaí have ruled out foul play in the case of a man whose charred remains were found in a wood in Clarinbridge, Co Galway, at the weekend.

But an investigation was continuing last night into the identity of the deceased - believed to have been in his 20s - and the exact circumstances of his death.

Meanwhile, a second inquiry is continuing into the death of a 61-year-old man at his home in Galway city. The results of a post-mortem in the case have not been released.

In the Clarinbridge case, the remains were discovered on Sunday evening by a man walking his dog in a densely-wooded area near the Kilcornan Brothers of Charity Centre.

The local parish priest, Father Eamonn Dermody, was among those who visited the scene on Sunday night and described the body as "very badly burnt". It was a "horrific" sight, he said.

The area was preserved overnight pending the arrival of forensic detectives and the State Pathologist, Dr Marie Cassidy, early yesterday.

The remains were later removed to Galway's University College Hospital as detectives in Mill Street Garda station began an investigation. But after a post-mortem, carried out at the hospital, gardaí said foul play was no longer suspected.

Death is believed to have occurred some time on Sunday evening, shortly before the body was discovered.

Superintendent Donal Ó Cualáin of Galway's Mill Street Garda Station said an inquiry would continue into the circumstances.

The identity of the dead man has also still to be established. Supt Ó Cualáin appealed to anyone who was in the area on Sunday evening to come forward.

"There's a walking track through the woods and, because of the day that was in it, there must have been people in the area," he said.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the incident room at Mill Street (tel 091-538099).

Also in Galway, Dr Cassidy carried out a second post-mortem examination last night on a body found in a house in the Bushy Park area of the city.

The remains of the 61-year-old man, who lived alone, were discovered on a landing of his home at Moycullen Road earlier on Sunday. There were no obvious injuries, but it is believed one of the avenues being pursued by investigators is that the house was burgled.

Dr Cassidy visited the scene yesterday and began the post-mortem into the body discovered there after she finished her examination of the Clarinbridge body. The results were not released for what Supt Ó Cualáin described as "operational reasons".