Justice Minister Heather Humphreys has welcomed an apology from former Fine Gael leader Alan Dukes for derogatory comments he made about people living on the border.
Mr Dukes said these people are “more likely” to be prone to violence.
“I welcome the fact that Alan Dukes apologised for the comments he made about Border people,â Ms Humphreys said in Cavan, reports Independent.
The comments, made in a three-part series on the life of businessman SeĂĄn Quinn, were unreservedly withdrawn by Mr Dukes, a former finance minister who had been instrumental in bailing out one of Quinn’s companies.
Referring to the murder of Christopher Mooney yesterday in Monaghan, followed by the suspect’s death in a road accident, Ms Humphreys said she was unable to comment on the details in the context of an ongoing Garda investigation.
However, she said it was “a very sad situation in very tragic circumstancesâ.
She added: “I would say to anybody who has any information to give it to the gardaĂ, and our thoughts are with the families of those who have been impacted by this awful murder,â reports Independent.
Separately, there was a fatal shooting in Newry on Thursday night.
Ms Humphreys said she was “not familiar, obviously, with the circumstances of the murder in Newry, but itâs very disturbing to hear such newsâ, reports Independent.
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