A 35-year-old woman has been attacked near the Grand Canal, Dublin, adjacent to where Sinead Kelly was murdered last week. The woman, who was working as a prostitute, sustained serious facial injuries when she was attacked off Fitzwilliam Square early yesterday.
Two men were arrested after the assault, and one man in his mid20s has been charged under Section 3 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997. He was released on bail and will appear at Dublin District Court tomorrow morning. The second man has been released without charge, pending the sending of a file to the DPP.
The woman was taken to hospital after being interviewed at Harcourt Terrace station. Gardai say the attack was not directly related to the murder of Ms Kelly, but extra surveillance is in place in the area as part of the investigation into Ms Kelly's murder.
Gardai have renewed their appeal for information on the murder of Ms Kelly, whose body was found on the banks of the Grand Canal in central Dublin early last Monday. Ms Kelly (21) was buried on Saturday after Requiem Mass at Our Lady of Victories Church in Ballymun. Her mother, father, two brothers and sister attended the service.
In a statement at the weekend gardai said a number of people who might have information about her murder still had not contacted them. They have asked for anyone who was in Baggot Street, Herbert Place, Percy Place or Wilton Terrace early on Monday, June 22nd, especially between 12.30 a.m. and 1 a.m., to contact them.
They also want to speak to any taxi or hackney drivers who picked up or dropped people in the area that night. They want to interview a number of men who were seen in the area, to eliminate them from their inquiries.
Anybody with information should contact the incident room at Harcourt Terrace Garda station on (01) 661-7104, the Garda confidential line 1 800-666-111, or Crimestoppers on 1 800250 025.