Robert O'Connor charged with murder after family killed in Louth

A mother, father and their adult son were found dead at their home near Tallanstown in County Louth on Monday morning, and a man in his 30s has been arrested and charged in connection with their deaths, police said. Mark OConnor, 54, Louise OConnor, 56, and their son Evan, 27, who had additional needs, were discovered at the Drumgowna property shortly before 10am; a care worker who called to collect Evan for his day centre raised the alarm, gardai said.

Officers who attended the scene described the three deaths as violent. Uniform gardai located the bodies at the house and on the driveway and preserved the scene for forensic examination. The remains were removed to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda and postmortem examinations began on Tuesday, officials said. A man in his 30s was arrested nearby shortly after gardai arrived and was initially detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act. He subsequently appeared at a special sitting of Drogheda District Court where he was charged with three counts of murder. The suspect has been named in court as Robert OConnor, 31, of Drumgowna.

Superintendent Andrew Watters said investigators are continuing to examine all of the...