The Taoiseach has said that the level of cruelty behind the arson attack that took the lives of a four-year-old boy and his grand-aunt in Offaly is almost impossible to grasp.
Tadhg Farrell and 60-year-old Mary Holt died after a fire broke out at a terraced home in Castleview Park in Edenderry on Saturday evening, reports RTE.
Speaking at Government Buildings, the Taoiseach called the attack “savage” and “callous”, reports RTE.
Micheál Martin said that An Garda SÃochána and the State will spare no effort in ensuring those responsible are brought before the courts.
He added that the use of accelerants in such incidents is becoming more frequent and stated: “We are determined to wipe it out and to make sure that we can stop this,”, reports RTE.
Mr Martin said that “it’s a savage form of criminal activity, which is reckless and is leading to the deaths of innocent people,”, reports RTE.
Gardaà are continuing efforts to identify suspects connected to the attack, during which another woman in her 50s sustained serious injuries.
She is receiving treatment at the Midland Regional Hospital in Tullamore, reports RTE.
Gardaà described the incident as a “callous, reckless and murderous attack on a family home,”, reports RTE.
One active line of inquiry is that an organised criminal gang involved in the drugs trade in the Midlands may have carried out the attack.
However, Ms Holt and Tadhg were entirely innocent, and it is believed the house may have been targeted due to drug debt intimidation, reports RTE.
Investigators believe a petrol bomb was thrown through the front window of the home shortly before 8pm on Saturday.
Earlier, the Minister for Justice said those behind the attack will face justice and that gardaà will “relentlessly” pursue the perpetrators of this “murderous attack”, reports RTE.
He said it was “an attack that was designed to kill the inhabitants” of the house, reports RTE.
Speaking to RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, Jim O’Callaghan confirmed he was aware that one line of inquiry is that an organised Midlands drug gang may have been responsible.
If that proves true, he said, “it just confirms that drugs are destroying societies and people who get involved in drugs need to know that they will wreak devastation, not just on themselves, but on those close to them and families in the area,”, reports RTE.
Post-mortem examinations on the bodies of Tadhg and Ms Holt were completed yesterday afternoon by Assistant State Pathologist Dr Margot Bolster.
The scene remains cordoned off today as further technical and forensic work continues, reports RTE.
Castleview Park is a long-established residential area near the town centre.
Local Fianna Fáil Councillor Claire Murray said it was a “dark day” for Edenderry and that there is an “awful sense of heaviness” throughout the community, reports RTE.
Speaking on RTÉ’s News at One, she said many residents were familiar with Ms Holt and Tadhg.
“Mary worked in a local nursing home and I believe she was one of the longest serving members in the nursing home. She gave an awful lot of time and dedication and care to so many people in Edenderry,” she said, reports RTE.
“And then you look at poor Tadhg. Only a few days ago he was probably looking forward to the Toy Show, to Christmas, to Santa coming. All the things that any four-year-old would be looking forward to. His future was robbed from him and people are just so raw,” added Ms Murray, reports RTE.
Independent Ireland Councillor Fergus McDonnell urged local residents to assist gardaà by sharing any information they may have about the attack.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, he said: “I’d ask people to support the gardaà with any information they have or may have, whether it be dash cam footage or word of mouth information, to pass that on to the gardaà and to make sure that these people are brought to justice and face the full rigours of the law,”, reports RTE.
Cllr McDonnell said people are extremely wary and unsettled in the aftermath of the attack.
He said drugs continue to be a significant problem across societies worldwide, with every town and village in Ireland affected, reports RTE.
He added that residents in Edenderry have long called for a 24-hour garda presence in the town and urged the Minister for Justice to follow through on promises to increase garda numbers nationwide.
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