Chief Superintendent asks for public’s help in murder investigations
ON Wednesday, yesterday, morning Chief Superintendent Aidan Glacken, Sligo Garda Station, made the following statement in relation to two murders in Sligo on April 11 and 12.
Speaking outside Sligo Garda Station, where there was a large media presence, he outlined the up-to-date details on the Garda investigation, confirming they were now investigating two separate murders.
This is the full text of his statement: “Yesterday, Tuesday, April 12, at approximately 10.30pm Gardaí from Sligo Garda Station attended at a private residence at Connaughton Road, Sligo, following the receipt of a 999 call.
“There Gardaí discovered the body of Michael Snee, 58 years. Michael had been subject of a serious physical assault and had suffered significant injuries.
“Previously on Monday, April 11, at approximately 8.30pm, Gardaí from Sligo Garda Station attended at a private residence at Cartron Heights, Sligo, following a call from the public.
“There Gardaí discovered the body of Aidan Moffitt, 42 years. “Aidan had also been the subject of a serious physical assault and had suffered significant injuries. “Michael and Aidan were well known and respected in this community. They were assaulted and murdered in their own homes.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with their families at this time and, indeed, their friends and the wider community in Sligo.
“Family Liaison Officers have been provided to both Michael and Aidan’s families and An Garda Síochána continue to provide ongoing support to the families. “I have commenced two separate murder investigations. A Senior Investigating Officer is in charge of each investigation supported by an incident room.
“Substantial Garda resources are dedicated to these investigations with further support from Regional and National Units.
“Both scenes have been sealed off and remain so, the Garda Technical Bureau are conducting a detailed forensic examination of each scene. “A postmortem was carried out on the remains of Aidan Moffitt at University Hospital Sligo by Dr Sally Ann Collis, State Pathologist. “A postmortem will be carried out on the remains of Michael Snee. I am not releasing any details of the postmortem examination for operational reasons.
“Shortly after 1.30am this morning [Wednesday] a male in his early 20s was arrested for murder.
“This male remains in custody, detained under section 4 Criminal Justice Act 1984, and I cannot make any further comment on this part of the investigation.
“We continue to retain an open mind in this investigation.
“I would like to thank the community for their co-operation and assistance so far, information received from across the community continues to assist us in our investigation. It is heartening to see such cross-community support at this time.
“I continue to appeal to the public for their assistance in that regard. “We are actively investigating as to whether there is any hate-related motive to these murders, An Garda Síochána will endeavour to seek out all the available evidence, and ultimately it will be for a court to decide on the motivation behind these appalling crimes.
“Gardaí are also investigating whether Michael and Aidan met their attacker online.
“Meeting people online is a normal activity. Meeting people online should be a safe activity. But, as with any online activity, everybody should be aware of personal safety advice, which we have provided on the Garda website.
“We continue to explore all the circumstances of these cases and are examining another recent incident which occurred in the Sligo area. “I am appealing to any person who may have been subject of any unwanted approaches or who was assaulted or otherwise attacked to contact the incident room at Sligo Garda Station.
“I have a dedicated diversity team here, we need to hear from you, we are here to listen to you, and we are here to support you.
“An Garda Síochána has an online facility to report hate crimes on the Garda website.
“I continue to appeal to anyone with any information on these crimes to contact us at Sligo Garda station. No matter how insignificant you think it may be, we need to hear from you.
“Please contact us at Sligo Garda Station at the dedicated incident room phone number 071 9157088, the Garda Confidential Line phone number 1800 666 111, or any Garda Station.
“I would like to reassure the public that all any information received will be treated in the strictest confidence. Finally, our thoughts and prayers are with Michael’s and Aidan’s families at this time.”