A father-of-three who was beaten to death in Swords in the early hours of Sunday morning has been described as “one of the nicest and most genuine people you could wish to meet”.
Dermot Byrne (54) was found badly beaten on North Street in the county Dublin town at around 3am after he was set upon by a number of assailants.
A 29-year-old man has been arrested in connection with the murder investigation, and gardaí are continuing to collect evidence through witness statements and from CCTV images.
The victim, who is originally from Finglas but has an address at Feltrim Road was said to have been out socialising in Swords prior to the attack, which occurred at a location just off Main Street.
Mr Byrne was known to be an accomplished pool player who regularly travelled to take part in tournaments both domestically and internationally.
In a statement released through its Facebook page on Monday morning the Irish Blackball Association which coordinates the sport in Ireland paid tribute to Mr Byrne and said the pool world had "lost one of its own".
“The Irish Blackball Association on behalf of every player who has ever met Dermot wish to convey their deepest sympathies to his family on this most tragic loss. Dermot will be missed by everyone he met,” it read.
The statement continued: “He was one of the nicest and most genuine people anyone could wish to meet. A true gentleman who never had a cross word with any soul.
“We are so proud to have had the opportunity of knowing Dermot, and the honour of being in his company… We will miss you friend.”
Mr Byrne was the father of three daughters, and was a director of the family-run Intercontinental Distributors business in his native Finglas.
Large parts of Swords remained sealed off on Sunday evening as gardaí continued technical examinations at the scene of the attack.
It is thought that there may have been a large number of witnesses given the large number of people likely to have been out in Swords at the time, with a number of busy nightspots located nearby.