Garda keeping open mind on cause of Roscommon deaths

THE THREE men who died in a house in Roscommon town early yesterday were discovered in a locked front room in the single-storey dwelling, which locals say had been vacant for some time.

Gardaí stressed that the cause of death could not be immediately determined. Postmortems were completed and toxicology results are awaited. There was evidence of a fire having started in an armchair in the room where the bodies were discovered.

A postmortem was carried out by State Pathologist Dr Marie Cassidy at University College Hospital Galway yesterday.

There was no visible sign of a fire on the outside of the unoccupied dwelling at St Ciaran’s Park, which is just off the square in the centre of Roscommon town. Firefighters who arrived at the scene early yesterday were not needed.

It is understood that two of the men who died had family connections. The men were named locally as Ian Finn (49), who lived most of his life in London and had family connections in Roscommon; John Kerr (26), originally from Ballymun but whose family moved to Frenchpark, Co Roscommon, some years ago; and local man Micheal Beirne (48), who was the partner of Mr Kerr’s mother.

Mr Finn, described as “harmless” by many in neighbouring shops and pubs, is understood to have been squatting in the house for some time. Local man Gerry O’Connor, a friend, said he had visited Mr Finn in the house at 7.30pm the day before the tragedy.

“We were very pally. I would look out for him. I used to bring him a cup of tea and a sandwich sometimes. I visited him every day,” said Mr O’Connor.

He said Mr Finn had been going through a rough patch in his personal life but was in good form the last time he saw him. “He was buzzing. He had cigarettes and drink,” said Mr O’Connor.

Supt Tom O’Connor, who is leading the investigation, confirmed there were no apparent signs of an assault and, following an initial examination of the house, there was no evidence of drug paraphernalia. He said he was keeping an open mind on the cause of death.

Chimney pots at the house were sealed but gardaí said it did not appear that a fire had been lit in the hearth. Supt O’Connor could not comment on whether cigarettes and empty bottles were visible in the room but local people said the house had been the subject of complaints in recent months because of suspicions about squatting and drinking parties there.

Gardaí arrived at about 7.30am after “a concerned local citizen living locally” had raised the alarm, and according to the superintendent they found the front door open but had to force their way into the front room, which was locked.

Bin bags full of empty bottles were visible inside the front wall of the house yesterday. There were no floral tributes, but as rumours spread about the deaths, many local people dropped by, some blessing themselves when told that three bodies had been found in the house.

St Ciaran’s Park is a quiet area, a stone’s throw from the local post office. As word of the deaths spread, many elderly people who were queuing for their pensions outside the post office visited the scene and stood in silence as the three coffins were carried out.

One local man said he had complained about the house to the county council and the local “environmental health office” after discovering that two of his children had spent a night there a few months ago. “I went inside and it was filthy, full of empty bottles and I also saw tinfoil,” he said. He added that several other residents had expressed concern about anti-social behaviour in the vacant house.

Mayor of Roscommon Cllr Tom Crosby expressed sympathy to the families of the three men. He said the tragedy underlined the sad lives being endured by many people with no hope of finding employment. “There is also a security issue associated with the large numbers of vacant houses around the country,” he said.