The man described by gardaí as a ‘person of interest’ in the murder of Jamey Carney had previously been refused asylum in Ireland, it can be revealed.
Jordanian national Ahmad Al-Saqar, who was in a relationship with Ms Carney, is being treated as a person of interest by gardaí after she was found dead at her home in Killarney, Co Kerry on Tuesday, reports The Mirror.
Mr Al-Saqar, 28, is understood to have left Ireland on a flight to Istanbul, Turkey, landing there approximately one hour before an alert for his whereabouts was issued.
It is understood he still had his passport after losing his bid for asylum, and it is now feared he has already left Turkey and returned to his home country of Jordan — a country with which Ireland has no extradition treaty, reports The Mirror.
The Irish Mirror has learned that Mr Al-Saqar, who came to Ireland in 2024, was refused his asylum application and had been in the process of an appeal when Ms Carney was murdered.
It is understood he came to the UK first before moving to Northern Ireland and eventually to Co Kerry, where he met Ms Carney and entered into a romantic relationship with her in recent months, reports The Mirror.
Al-Saqar is understood to have flown out of Dublin Airport to Turkey early on Tuesday morning, having taken a 3am bus from Killarney, and was out of the country before gardaí were alerted to the discovery of Ms Carney, 41, dead in her bed at around lunchtime that day.
Gardaí believe she was brutally beaten and suffocated to death, and that Al-Saqar was in her company on Monday, having also been seen in the area on Sunday, reports The Mirror.
Social media posts across numerous platforms reveal that Ms Carney and Mr Al-Saqar were in a close relationship for a number of months.
In his own post to TikTok, Al-Saqar appeared in a video with Ms Carney as she displayed a ring on his finger, with the post stating: “My bride and my princess,” reports The Mirror.
He also frequently posted on her Facebook page, responding to photos of them together with comments including “I love you so much” and “my beautiful family” in recent days.
In her last post to Instagram, Ms Carney and Al-Saqar posed in front of a New York backdrop as she wished her followers a “Happy 4th y’all,” reports The Mirror.
A week before her death she posted pictures of them together “soaking up the Irish sun,” while on 2 July she posted a photo of herself, Al-Saqar, her daughter and their dog.
Further posts by both also reveal they attended The Cure concert together at Dublin’s Marley Park on 26 June, reports The Mirror.
On 28 April, Ms Carney posted a video to her Instagram of herself with Al-Saqar, hugging him as they smiled for the camera.
“He continues to show me what safe love is,” she posted alongside the video, reports The Mirror.
Gardaí believe Mr Al-Saqar, who came to Ireland seeking asylum, had been living in the country for the last two years and had more recently been residing with Ms Carney at her home in Killarney.
Gardaí say they are now working with Interpol and Europol to co-ordinate with the Turkish authorities in tracing his exact whereabouts, reports The Mirror.
In their latest appeal, gardaí said a person of interest had left Ireland before they could be interviewed by officers.
“An Garda Síochána is satisfied that a person of interest in this investigation left the jurisdiction in the early hours of Tuesday, July 7, prior to the body of the deceased female being discovered and reported to An Garda Síochána,” a garda spokesperson said, reports The Mirror.
“Gardaí are continuing to appeal for any person with any information on this incident to come forward and speak to the investigation team.”
The murder of Ms Carney has drawn headlines around the world, with American outlets including the New York Post and Newsweek publishing stories in recent days, reports The Mirror.
Her heartbroken mother and sister have since travelled to Ireland as they seek answers and to arrange Ms Carney’s funeral in the coming weeks.
Grieving sister Devon Bennett shared a number of photos of them together as she told of her family’s unimaginable loss, and also uploaded a link to a GoFundMe page as she pleaded for help to keep herself and her mother in Ireland during this difficult time, reports The Mirror.
“My name is Devon Bennett, from New York. My sister, Jamey Noel Carney, was murdered in Killarney, Kerry, Ireland on Tuesday, July 7 2026. She is survived by her brilliant 13 year old daughter Michaela,” she wrote.
“Jamey was an insanely caring human being, who dedicated so much of herself, her energy, and her time, to fighting for the rights of others. We grew up in New York, but she spent much of her best years with Michaela in the states in Bergen County, NJ. But their true home, where they both truly felt they belonged, was the beautiful town of Killarney,” reports The Mirror.
Speaking about the need to raise funds, Devon said: “With last minute travel, accommodations, legal fees, as well as the looming funerary and memorial service costs hanging over our heads, we’re reaching out to the public for help.
“Either you may have known Jamey and our family, from any stage of her short but wild and beautiful life, or you came upon this GoFundMe after hearing about her terrible murder, we cannot stress enough that every single dollar (or Euro) will truly count.
“This GoFundMe is being run from the US by Brian, my partner, and Staci, my best friend, while I am overseas and unable to access my usual means of communication,” reports The Mirror.
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