Gardaí are not searching for anyone else in relation to the deaths of a child and a man in Finglas, north Dublin.
The child was aged around seven years old while the man is believed to be in his 30s. It is understood they were father and daughter and originally came from Eastern Europe.
The bodies were found in a house in the Heathfield estate in the Cappagh area at around 8pm on Saturday.
The investigation is at an early stage but sources say there was no sign of a break-in or external involvement.
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The scene has been preserved for a technical examination, while the road was cordoned off with a large number of gardaí present on Sunday morning.
Gardaí have been conducting ground searches, including the front gardens of neighbouring properties.
The Office of the State Pathologist and the coroner had been notified, the Garda said in a statement, adding postmortems would be arranged. “The results of these examinations will assist gardaí in determining the course of the investigation.”
The bodies were removed from the scene on Sunday morning following the completion of an initial forensic examination.
A mother-of-two living in the area spoke of the “disbelief” amongst local residents.
“My daughter would be the same age as the little girl and we used to see her in the playground, particularly over the summer.
“It’s just hard to comprehend when you have kids of your own and now you’re wondering how do you even explain it to them or should you?”
Another male resident said he was “stunned” to learn of the two deaths.
“Myself and my wife saw a number of ambulances coming into the estate last night and we were wondering what happened. We never could have imagined that a young girl had died so tragically. All the neighbourhood are so upset with what’s happened and our hearts go out to the child’s mother.”
Sharing in that sense of shock was Sinn Féin Dublin North West TD Dessie Ellis.
“Heathfield is a newish estate and it’s a really good area, most of the estate are private houses and they’re lovely houses,” he said.
“A lot of people settled in there who were originally from Finglas and other areas. It is really horrific.”
Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne said the community had been “stunned” by the “deeply tragic” event.
“All of our thoughts are with the family of the two people and the wider community,” he said.
Local Fianna Fáil councillor Keith Connolly similarly spoke of the “massive shock” in the area.
“The estate was built in the last 15 years, directly across from the Cappagh hospital so it’s very residential with a lot of young families. Supports will be needed in terms of those involved and for the wider community.”
