THE PSNI has sought the assistance of the Garda in its investigation into the murder of a mother of four in Derry at the weekend.
The body of Jean Quigley, who was pregnant with her fifth child, was found in her home in Derry’s Cornshell Fields estate on Saturday night.
The 30 year old victim is survived by her four children Jordan, Dylan, Cole and Shanice whose ages range from four to 12 years.
Floral tributes and crucifixes have been placed outside Ms Quigley’s home where a forensic examination of the scene continued yesterday.
Neighbours who organised a prayer vigil outside the semi-detached home said that after their initial reactions of shock and anger, their thoughts had turned to the wellbeing of Ms Quigley’s children.
Consultant child psychologist Gerry Cunningham said it would take a long time for the children to come to terms with their mother’s death because of the circumstances in which she was murdered. “There are many things to be taken into account, the context of the events, what were the lives of the children like prior to their mother’s death, what support services are available to them.”
Meanwhile, following a post mortem on Ms Quigley’s body yesterday, the police officer investigating her murder said he was following a “number of live lines of inquiry”.
He also confirmed that the Garda was involved in the murder investigation.
Det Chief Inspector Frankie Taylor said 45 officers were involved in the murder investigation.
“Ms Quigley was a devoted mother of four who was expecting her fifth child, so not only are we investigating her murder but also the death of an unborn child. The postmortem has been completed and for obvious reasons I can’t go into the cause of death except to say she suffered a horrible and brutal death.
“She was found by members of her family on Saturday night and our thoughts go out to them. Thankfully none of her children was in the house at the time of her murder.
“Ms Quigley was last seen alive on Friday night at 10pm when she arrived home by taxi. We are anxious to hear from anyone in terms of her whereabouts between last Wednesday and Friday night.
“So far the community response in terms of providing us with information has been good but the more information we receive the better in terms of bringing the culprit to court”, he said.