Parents question 'flawed' Garda canal death probe

The household of a County Down pistillate recovered dormant successful Monaghan successful March person blamed what they spot arsenic a bid of mistakes by Garda (Irish police) investigators for leaving them with unanswered questions astir what happened.

Kelly Lynch, 23, was recovered successful the Ulster Canal connected St Patrick’s Day, 30 hours aft the past confirmed sighting of her.

Her parents highlighted the police's nonaccomplishment to retrieve CCTV rapidly capable and told BBC Spotlight they are relying connected a review of the case ordered by the Garda Commissioner successful October.

Gardaí said the reappraisal is not a re-investigation but is to found whether determination are immoderate further lines of enquiry.

Ms Lynch, who is primitively from Gilford, had travelled to Monaghan to enactment with her fellow astatine his household location aft his member died.

In the aboriginal hours of Saturday 16 March, she was connected her mode location from a nighttime retired with her fellow and his friends.

The past confirmed sighting of Ms Lynch was extracurricular a nationalist schoolhouse astir 400 yards from a span implicit the canal wherever she was recovered 30 hours later.

Eight months later, Julieanne Lynch said she inactive has questions astir what happened some during the nighttime retired and erstwhile her girl was going location to her boyfriend’s house.

“There’s nary clarification and there’s a batch of discrepancies," she added. "And I conscionable find it truthful unusual that, you know, 8 months on, those answers inactive person not been fixed to us.”

A cardinal question successful the lawsuit is whether Ms Lynch walked disconnected connected her ain from the nationalist schoolhouse towards the bridge.

Her begetter has told BBC Spotlight that CCTV from the surrounding area, which mightiness person answered that question, was not secured rapidly capable aft her death.

“Anybody knows the archetypal 24 hours is important successful immoderate investigation," said Sean Lynch.

"I support saying with the CCTV, determination was CCTV determination – if it was got to connected clip it would definitively beryllium if Kelly walked connected her own, she ran, oregon if she adjacent went by astatine all.”

The Spotlight probe has raised further questions astir the Garda investigation, including implicit the CCTV and whether the span was decently preserved arsenic a imaginable transgression scene.

The Lynch household are besides unhappy with what they saw arsenic the rude and dismissive cognition of a elder serviceman successful the case.

When their daughter’s apparel were returned to them, they questioned tiny reddish marks connected her shoes reasoning they mightiness person been her bloodstains oregon idiosyncratic else’s.

Sean Lynch said: “When I asked the elder investigating serviceman astir it helium told me: ‘Sure if you deliberation it’s humor wherefore didn’t you get it tested yourself?’

"And erstwhile I enactment it to them astatine the meeting, helium said: ‘What I said was definite you’re entitled to get it tested yourself.’”

“Adding the connection 'entitled' doesn’t marque it immoderate little hurtful."

A elder Garda serviceman apologised to the Lynch household for the comment.

Gardaí told BBC News NI it was assisting an inquest, co-operating with a Garda Ombudsman probe and conducting the reappraisal of its archetypal investigation.

It said that due to the fact that these processes were ongoing it couldn’t marque immoderate elaborate nationalist comment.

It besides said it was alert of a important measurement of misinformation astir the lawsuit circulating connected societal media.

The adjacent reappraisal of the lawsuit is being led by a elder investigating serviceman extracurricular Monaghan and the surrounding regions.

The Lynch household person said their daughter’s apparel are being returned to them arsenic portion of the review.

Sean Lynch said his household are present relying connected the serviceman starring the review.

He added: “I’m hoping that this is simply a precise experienced officer, a detective, that helium volition beryllium capable to look astatine it from his years of acquisition and spot discrepancies. That’s each we’ve wanted from the precise start.”