Woman, 59, dead after a couple knifed near Cork home

The couple were stabbed outside their home at Shrewsbury Downs in Ballinlough on the southside of Cork city at around 9.30pm.

The 59-year-old woman, and her 62-year-old husband, named locally as Stella and Brian Gallagher, were attacked by a man armed with a knife.

The incident started within their home shortly after 9pm.

Mr Gallagher suffered his injuries in the driveway of their property. His wife ran to the green area close to her home, where she was stabbed.

It is understood the culprit attempted to get into a neighbouring house in the aftermath of the stabbing.

The Garda Armed Response Unit (ASU) attended the scene. Members of the ASU managed to get the knife out of the hands of the man. The weapon used in the incident has been retrieved by gardaí. A man in his 30s, who is known to the couple, was arrested at the scene.

 Neighbours of the pair contacted the emergency services having witnessed an attack outside the house.

Paramedics performed CPR on the injured man and the couple were brought to Cork University Hospital for treatment.

The woman subsequently died in hospital. Her husband remains seriously injured.

The younger man was taken to a Garda station in Cork for questioning. He is being detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act.

He was due to be seen by a doctor yesterday evening.

It is understood gardaí need to ascertain whether the man is medically fit to be questioned.

The scene was cordoned off. A full forensic examination of the area is set to take place.

A local man told Paul Byrne of 96FM that he was shocked at what had unfolded in their quiet neighbourhood. He said: ‘It is frightening to think that it could happen on your doorstep, that you could look out your window and see people lying out there, especially when you have young kids living here and playing out on the green here.’

The man said that he wasn’t at home when the incident took place on Monday.

He became aware of the unfolding situation when his wife contacted him. He said: ‘She was ringing. Other neighbours were ringing, leaving messages to stay indoors for now.’

Another neighbour said that the gardaí responded very quickly on Monday night. They said: ‘It was great to see [the speed at which gardaí arrived]. We are shocked.

‘We have never ever seen anything like this.’ A local woman said it was shocking to see such a tragedy hit the area in the run-up to Christmas.

In an interview with Newstalk, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said that it was ‘very, very sad news for the neighbourhood’.

The Corkman said: ‘I live in that neighbourhood. This is totally unexpected and I can only think of the family and friends of the family who have been impacted by this awful incident.’

Meanwhile, two red-brick houses and the green area at Shrewsbury Downs remained cordoned off last night for a technical examination.

There was a Garda presence at the scene.

The Gallagher family is well-liked in the area. Two neighbours chatting by the green area declined to comment on the incident, other than to describe it as a tragedy for the family.

Two members of An Garda Síochána were carrying out door-to-door inquiries shortly before 10am yesterday.

A murder investigation is expected to be launched following a post-mortem examination on the deceased woman, which is due to be completed at Cork University Hospital.

* This article was originally published on Extra.ie.