THREE MEN are in police custody in relation to a robbery in Dominica in the West Indies on Sunday in which a 43-year-old Irish man died.
Police in Dominica said yesterday that Joe Costello, a Dublin native, died after being struck on the head with a sharp object when he rushed to assist friends who were being attacked by three masked men.
The three men were carrying weapons including a cutlass – a curved single-edged blade – a piece of wood and a hatchet during the attack which occurred at the Pagua Bay House, a boutique hotel and bar owned by Rick and Alicia Davison, an American couple who were also injured in the attack.
Supt Daniel Carbon of the Dominica Police Force said that no formal charge had been made against the three islanders who were being questioned in police custody over the attack. Supt Carbon said that the incident was a “brutal and heinous crime”, which the police there were putting all their efforts into solving.
Derek Barrett, the owner of Silks hotel, where Mr Costello worked, paid tribute to him yesterday as a “very nice man” who had “more friends than possessions”.
Mr Barrett said Mr Costello’s death had rocked the small island community where, he said, there had been an outpouring of support since the incident occurred on Sunday.
Originally from Dublin, Mr Costello lived in Britain for a time before moving to the Caribbean where he was working at Silks, in Hatton Garden, around 40km from the island’s capital, Roseau.
The Department of Foreign Affairs is offering consular assistance to Mr Costello’s girlfriend and family members.