Soldier who fell from barracks in ‘tragic accident’ is laid to rest

THE funeral of the 32-year-old soldier who died after falling from a military barracks took place on Saturday morning.

Mourners heard how Private Patrick Conlon was a keen footballer who represented Ireland at junior level and was also an international player for the Defence Forces.

His parents Christopher and Heather Conlon led the procession to the church in Sligo where military honours were performed.

Gardaí and the military police are investigating the incident, which the Defence Forces say was a ‘tragic accident’, at McKee Barracks on Blackhorse Avenue in Dublin 7.

It is believed Private Conlon was trying to get back into a building at the barracks late at night after he found himself locked out.

He was pronounced dead at the Mater Hospital at 2.10am on Thursday shortly after the fall.

Private Conlon was based in the 28th Infantry Batallion in Co. Donegal and had an address at Collooney in Co. Sligo, where he lived with his girlfriend, Louise Finan.

Noel Kennedy, secretary of the Sligo-Leitrim and District Soccer League, who knows the family, said: ‘Paddy was a great footballer. He was a lovely lad and his family is highly respected.’

Private Conlon’s funeral took place at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Sligo.