Another tourist found dead in Goa, 3rd in a month

PANAJI: A 66-year-old Irish woman was found dead in her rented flat in North Goa on August 30, the third death of a foreign national in the state in one month, police said.

Mary Gertrude Mcnamara was found dead in her flat in Candolim, where she lived alone. Her body was discovered by her friends who broke open the door of the flat after she did not respond to calls and messages, police said.

The room in which the body was found was also locked from inside, they added. The police believe the woman may have been dead for several days before her body was discovered but are awaiting the post-mortem exam report.

“We will carry out further investigation as per the autopsy report and statement of her friends,” North Goa superintendent of police Shobit Saksena said.

As is the practice, the police are required to contact the respective consulate before proceeding with post-mortem examination, should the consulate choose to depute a representative to be present during the same.

The incident comes nearly two weeks after two Russian women, including an actor, were found dead, in separate incidents, in their apartment in North Goa.

On August 19, actor Alexandra Djavi was found hanging in her rented apartment in Siolim while Ekaterina Titova was found dead in her flat in the same area.

While the police initially said there was no evidence of foul play, Titova’s death was later attributed to murder after the post-mortem report revealed she was smothered to death. Her friend, Denis Kruichkoy, was arrested in the case.

The cause of Djavi’s death is yet to be ascertained pending examination of the viscera.