Coast Guard helicopter launched after reports of swimmer in difficulty in Tramore, Co. Waterford
The Waterford-based Coast Guard helicopter Rescue 117 was launched and conducted sweeps of the sea off Boatstrand.
Also launched was the Tramore-based RNLI lifeboat.
The search effort remains ongoing.
The operation came after drownings in Ireland soared by 10pc compared to 2024 levels.
The latest tragedy occurred in Kerry where a young man died after getting into difficulty swimming on Tuesday.
Padraig O'Rahilly (24) from Glenflesk outside Killarney died when he got into difficulty while swimming in the River Flesk on Tuesday afternoon.
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Extra.ie
22 minutes ago
- Extra.ie
DNA hopes to solve Sophie Toscan du Plantier murder
Gardaí investigating the Sophie Toscan du Plantier cold-case murder should know 'within weeks' if a new DNA analysis method has successfully identified her killer, sources have told The US-based M-Vac Systems came to Ireland earlier this summer to carry out detailed forensic examinations on several exhibits, which it believes could glean new evidence and pinpoint who murdered the French filmmaker in West Cork almost 30 years ago. Ms Toscan du Plantier, 39, was found badly beaten on the laneway leading to her holiday home in Toormore, near Schull, Co. Cork, on the morning of December 23, 1996. Pic: PA Wire A postmortem examination revealed she had been bludgeoned to death with a rock and a concrete block, but her killer was never identified. However, almost 30 years later, technological advances may help solve the case once and for all. The M-Vac method of testing is a forensic DNA collection technique that uses a wet vacuum system to recover DNA material from surfaces, especially when traditional swabbing methods fail or yield low results. Sophie Toscan du Plantier. Pic: REX/Shutterstock It is hoped that the method – which has helped resolve decades-old cases in the US – will be able to extract trace DNA from the rock and concrete block which were used to kill her in December 1996. M-Vac Systems CEO Jared Bradley travelled to Ireland in July, when the tests were carried out. Ahead of his trip, he wrote on social media: 'Praying for a fantastic outcome. If what I believe will happen actually does, it will be MASSIVE for us in a whole host of ways. Please pray for us.' While Mr Bradley is confident of results, gardaí are keeping an open mind as to whether or not it will solve the near-30-year mystery. Jean-Pierre Gazeau, uncle of Sophie Toscan du Plantier. Security sources with knowledge of the case said: 'M-Vac Systems and that whole way of extracting DNA has helped solve a lot of cold cases over in the US so the hope is that it does the same thing here. 'But there have been plenty of false dawns in this investigation. 'The report is expected soon but, until then, the investigation is still live and officers from the Serious Crime Review Team are still out there doing their jobs. 'M-Vac has been working with Forensic Science Ireland (FSI) on the task and reports are due soon. We can't put an exact timeframe on it but it could be days but most likely a matter of weeks.' A total of ten suspects were identified during the 29-year investigation, and it is hoped that if a DNA profile can be extracted from the murder weapons, it could identify the killer. 'Gardaí have these DNA profiles stored away so it's a matter of waiting for the report to come back,' the source said. 'There's hope here, absolutely. It has worked before and it can work for us on this case as well. 'Once FSI have the details, it could be a case of confronting one of these suspects, that's if they are still alive.' The prime suspect in the case has always been Ian Bailey, an English journalist living in West Cork who died last year aged 66. Although he was convicted of the murder in absentia by a French court in 2019, he never admitted guilt before his death. He was questioned twice by gardaí about her death but was never put on trial in Ireland. The Irish courts repeatedly refused requests from the French authorities seeking his extradition for questioning and to appear before the courts in France. According to Sophie's uncle, Jean-Pierre Gazeau, her parents, Georges and Marguerite, struggled terribly with the way their eldest child died. Their pain was compounded by the lack of answers as to what exactly happened on that fateful morning. Sophie was a mother of one; her first marriage ended in divorce and she remarried. Her last-known conversation was a phone call with her film producer husband Daniel Du Plantier. He too has since died. Mr Gazeau previously told 'What happened between Sunday, December 22, 1996, and the next day of December 23, is completely black. 'It is a black period and we don't know anything that happened for Sophie… We can have assumptions, but we don't really know. We don't know the truth and this of course is very frustrating because when you don't know in which way Sophie died, the way Sophie was killed, it's difficult, it's difficult to deal with the sorrow.' In April of this year, Detective Inspector Des McTiernan told an official Garda podcast that the investigation into the killing was progressing well and that gardaí were availing of new technologies to help solve the crime. 'From a forensic perspective, we're trying to develop it more, because there are now advancements out there on the worldwide scale,' he said on the podcast available on the Garda website. 'We don't just confine ourselves to Ireland and our ability and capacity here. We have gone abroad, and we've done that before. We have close links to the FBI, and that's working quite well. Forensics is advancing all the time. Phone analysis is advancing all the time. 'Phone extractions going back two, three years could be totally different to what you get now, and you have to be very aware of that. So the technical sides of investigations and cold cases are also an opportunity for us.' In a statement on the latest developments, gardaí said that they would not comment on the specifics of the focus of the investigation. A spokesman said: 'An Garda Síochána is not providing any further information on the investigation into the murder of Sophie Toscan du Plantier, at this time.'
The Journal
13 hours ago
- The Journal
Councillors wear Palestine Action t-shirts in Newry as PSNI issues warning ahead of protests
TWO INDEPENDENT COUNCILLORS wore Palestine Action t-shirts at a protest in Newry last night, as the PSNI today warned it will take action against anyone seen to be supporting the group this weekend. Independent councillors Alan Lawes and Cieran Perry attended a weekly Palestinian support protest yesterday in Newry, Co Down and displayed t-shirts and posters supporting Palestine Action. Palestine Action is a UK-based protest collective and last month, a vast majority of MPs in the UK parliament backed the Labour government's move to ban the group as a terrorist organisation. The ban means that membership of, or support for, Palestine Action is a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison, under the Terrorism Act 2000. The move to ban the organisation was announced after two Voyager aircraft were damaged at RAF base in Oxfordshire on 20 June, an incident claimed by Palestine Action, which police said caused around £7 million (€8m) of damage . Councillor Alan Lawes of Meath County Council said his intention in showing support for Palestine Action last night was to 'expose the hypocrisy of Keir Starmer's Government in banning a non-violent direct action protest group while also supplying weapons to slaughter children in Gaza'. While the UK Government last year suspended around 30 arms export licences to Israel , British Foreign Secretary David Lammy noted that this is not a 'blanket ban or an arms embargo'. Councillor Cieran Perry pictured holding the megaphone in Newry last night Cllr Cieran Perry Cllr Cieran Perry Meanwhile, Councillor Cieran Perry, Independent Group leader on Dublin City Council, said Britian is using 'draconian legislation to silence ordinary people calling out genocide'. Lawes said his action in Newry was in 'solidarity with the peaceful protesters arrested in London at the weekend in a disgraceful attempt to muzzle voices opposing the Israeli genocide'. Over 500 people were arrested in London last weekend, and their average age was 54 – some 112 of them were over 70 years old. In Belfast, a woman in her 70s was arrested last weekend for wearing a Palestine Action t-shirt. Protests are planned in Belfast and across the North this weekend and the PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Anthony McNally warned anyone planning to protest 'to ensure they act within the law'. He said the move to proscribe Palestine Action under the Terrorism Act 'has no impact on other groups' or individuals' right to protest about Gaza'. Advertisement However, he warned that 'anyone showing support for Palestine Action, including with placards or messages on clothing, may be committing an offence'. 'I would urge everyone to consider the seriousness of a prosecution under the Terrorism Act and the very real long-term implications this could have on their future,' said McNally. While McNally said the right to freedom of speech and freedom of assembly are 'fundamental human rights protected in law', he added that these rights are 'limited by the need to prevent and detect crime'. He said that if the PSNI 'identifies potential criminal offences' it will 'take lawful and proportionate action'. 'We may arrest and detain anyone suspected of committing an offence,' said McNally. Councillors Alan Lawes (left) and Cieran Perry Cieran Perry Cieran Perry Perry told The Journal that the PSNI warning is 'really disappointing'. 'I thought the PSNI would have had more sense, given the sensitivities in the six counties,' said Perry. 'I would have thought they would be more sensible than to try and provoke people by arresting people for simply supporting a non-violent, direct action protest group.' 'The hypocrisy of the PSNI to begin to charge people with terrorism offenses when all over loyalist areas, there is a blatant disregard for that legislation.' A Presbyterian minister, Reverend Bill Shaw, was cautioned by the PSNI last week in Belfast for wearing t-shirts in support of Palestine Action. He too accused the PSNI of double standards over an alleged failure to tackle support for proscribed paramilitary groups. He told the Irish News: 'People within the loyalist community can display UVF flags, UDA flags. 'They can march with bands, with paramilitary insignia, all of which are prescribed to organisations, and nothing happens.' Elsewhere, Perry said the arrests so far have been 'both ridiculous and dangerous' and pointed to the ages of those arrested. 'Just looking at the age profile of the people arrested, including ex-veterans and people involved in the Church, they are almost the definition of non-terrorists, by any account.' Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Irish Examiner
14 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
'Preferred bidder' found for MV Matthew berthed in Cork Harbour
Drug trafficking cargo ship the MV Matthew has cost the State almost €10m in maintenance, crewing, and berthing fees since it was intercepted in 2023. A buyer has been found for the drug trafficking ship, and the Revenue Commissioners are engaging with Panamanian authorities to ensure legal and regulatory compliance. The MV Matthew, a Panamanian-registered ship, was at the centre of the largest cocaine seizure in the history of the State. Eight men were sentenced to a combined 129 years in prison in July for their role in the drug trafficking operation in which some €157m worth of cocaine was seized. The MV Matthew, owned by a Dubai-based company, was boarded at gunpoint by Ireland's elite army ranger wing in rough seas off the Cork coast in September 2023. Eight men from the 21-person crew were ultimately charged with drug trafficking offences. The ship, which has since been berthed in Cork Harbour, has been costing an average of €120,000 each week to maintain. However, Revenue has confirmed that 'a preferred bidder has been identified' for the MV Matthew. 'Revenue is engaging with the Panamanian authorities to ensure compliance with maritime legislation and regulations that govern the disposal of the MV Matthew, and has received confirmation from them that it is receiving attention,' a statement said. 'Revenue hopes to have these matters finalised shortly. Revenue is required to ensure that all regulations and legal obligations are fully complied with throughout the disposal and removal process.' 'Far too long' Berthing the ship, which includes costs for unberthing and moving the vessel when necessary, has cost €2,187,950. Maintenance of the ship — including fuel costs, waste removal, and repairs — has cost €3,784,050. Crewing has cost 3,762,054. More than €9,734,054 has been spent on the ship in total. These costs were paid by the Revenue Commissioners to maintain and manage the MV Matthew from September 2023 to the end of July 2025. Fianna Fáil TD for Cork South Central Séamus McGrath said that the disposal of the MV Matthew is taking 'far too long'. 'The cost of keeping it on a weekly basis is extremely high,' he said. 'I doubt very much at this stage if the State will actually be any net better off as a result of the sale, given the amount of cost that was incurred in terms of the storage and maintenance of the ship.' The ship had been maintained to allow access for defence legal teams as it was at the centre of a major criminal trial. The Special Criminal Court authorised its release on December 2. It was only possible to dispose of the ship from that date. Mr McGrath said that it should have been ready for sale as soon as it was released by the courts. He said he has raised his concerns both with Revenue and with the Public Accounts Committee, and has requested further information on the sales process.
