A Pensioner found dead in his home at a Limerick city sheltered housing scheme yesterday morning may have been fatally injured after being hit with a fire extinguisher, garda∅ believe.
A murder investigation began after a caretaker at Good Shepherd Avenue in the city centre found Mr Joseph O'Doherty (74) lying dead on his bedroom floor at 4 a.m. A young man was in the flat at the time.
Mr Frank McCracken said he saw the fire extinguisher lying on the floor by the living-room door, yards from its normal position in the kitchenette area of the one-bedroom flat.
Mr McCracken, who was alerted to the incident after an emergency button in the bungalow was activated, said the assailant covered his face with his arm and dashed past him out the door. "He did not seem to be armed," he said.
Garda∅ sealed off the scene for technical examination by the State pathologist, Dr John Harbison, and detectives from the Garda Bureau of Crime Investigation. A public phone box 200 metres away on the Dublin Road was also sealed off. It is believed the attacker made an emergency call from there.
Mr O'Doherty, a retired schoolteacher, had lived at Good Shepherd Avenue, a 41-unit scheme for independent living run by the Good Shepherd Sisters, for two years. He was a cousin of a former mayor of Limerick, Cllr John Ryan.
Supt Tony Kennelly of Henry Street Garda station said it was believed the victim had been hit with a blunt instrument. Mr McCracken said Mr O'Doherty was dead when he pulled off a blanket covering his face. "It was a terrible shock," he said. The assailant gained entry through the front door which appears to have been left unlocked.
A neighbour of Mr O'Doherty said she heard muffled noises from the next-door flat in the early hours. "The bedroom is right next to mine and I heard all this commotion. I thought he could not sleep because of being sick," she said.
Mr O'Doherty, a single man from the nearby St Mary's parish, had been in hospital up to a fortnight ago and was due to return next month for a kidney operation. The previous evening, two garda∅ patrolling in the area had checked on him.
Mr O'Doherty had returned from England after his retirement to look after his mother. Neighbours said he lived quietly, reading his books, listening to his radio and feeding the pigeons in the grounds. He had a television installed a month ago.
Sister Br∅d Mullins, the community leader, said this was the first serious incident since the housing scheme opened eight years ago.