THE BALLYBUNION Sea Cliff and Rescue team of volunteers were continuing to search the coastline yesterday for a west African man in his 30s whom gardaí were seeking to question over the strangling of his Polish wife in Tralee.
Members of the dead woman’s family have arrived in Tralee.
The body of Kataryzna Bartowiak (24) was discovered at her home in Deerpark Tralee at 3pm on Tuesday after calls to the emergency services. She had apparently been dead since Monday night.
Her husband Stephen Goodson-Ukiwo, originally from the Republic of Benin in west Africa, bordering Nigeria, was one of two people who alerted the emergency services at about 3pm on Tuesday. The couple’s 14-month-old son was in the house alone when the services arrived.
More than five hours of negotiations took place between gardaí and Mr Goodson-Ukiwo who had driven in his wife’s car to the cliffs at Ballybunion. The local Coast Guard unit was on standby since 5pm.
At 10pm, the man fell from the 150ft cliff, and the unit immediately began a sea search. For the past two days they have concentrated on the coastline, spokesman Omar Fitzelle said.
The body had floated on the water for a while, not far from the Ladies Beach, before disappearing, according to sources.
The Valentia Marine Rescue Centre which is co-ordinating the recovery operation said currents along the coast were strong and there was too much of a swell for divers to go down and conduct a search.
The aunt and brother of the murdered woman flew into Cork Airport from Poland on Wednesday night. They were met by a Garda family liaison officer and accompanied to Tralee.
It is understood arrangements are being made for the release of the body, which may take some time. The examination of the scene, a rented house, at Deerpark alongside the Manor retail park was nearing conclusion, Tralee Supt Jim O’Connor said yesterday.