Garda sub-aqua divers searched a tributary of the River Suck in Ballinasloe yesterday as an intensive murder hunt got under way in the east Galway town. Mr John Kennedy (50), from Ballinruane, Ahascragh, Co Galway, was found dead in the Funworld amusement arcade in the town at 4.15 a.m. on Tuesday. Mr Kennedy, who was acting manager of the arcade, had extensive head injuries.
He was wearing only a shirt and shorts when found. Chief Supt Joe Kilgannon, who is leading the inquiry, described his death as a particularly brutal murder. A post-mortem examination showed he had suffered "severe lacerations of the brain" following repeated blows with a blunt instrument.
A spokesman at the incident room set up in Ballinasloe Garda station said no motive had yet been established for the killing. Gardai said they did not expect an early breakthrough in the case and were still unsure if there was a "local connection". They had not ruled out robbery as a possible motive. There was no security video in the arcade but the gardai were studying footage from a security video in an adjoining fast-food restaurant. Up to seven members of the Garda sub-aqua unit took part in the search for the murder weapon, which concentrated on a stretch of the Suck tributary. A yard at the back of the arcade was also searched.
House-to-house inquiries continued in the town yesterday evening. i sought to establish the circumstances leading up to Mr Kennedy's death. Gardai have appealed to anyone with information to contact them on a confidential telephone line at 0905-42123.
They are interested in particular in hearing from anybody who was on the Main Street in Ballinasloe between midnight and 4.30 a.m. on Tuesday, or anyone who passed through the town and noticed any suspicious activity.
Mr Kennedy's remains will be removed this evening from Portiuncula Hospital to St Cuan's Church in Ahascragh. He will be buried tomorrow morning.