Son charged with murder of his mother and attempted murder of father in Cavan

Danny Heyneman has appeared in court and has been charged with the murder and attempted murder of his mother and father at their Kilnavart, Ballyconnell, County Cavan home on Saturday night. 

The 31-year-old was charged at the Monaghan District Court after his mother, Annie, a 55-year-old mother of five was found dead at her home. Her husband, who raised the alarm, was brought to hospital with serious injuries following the alleged attack.

Danny Heyneman made no reply to the charges in court. There was no application for bail made before he High Court, Newstalk reports. He will appear in court again on Friday (Jan 17).

Detective Sergeant Sharon Walsh of Cavan Garda Station gave evidence in court. She said she arrested the accused on Tuesday at Cavan Garda Station.

It was reported by Extra.ie, that on Saturday night, Annie's, Dutch-born husband Henk was also stabbed but managed to stagger to a neighbor’s home for help.

The attacker also set fire to the family home. He then, reportedly, made his way into Ballyconnell where he went to a chip shop and told the staff to contact the gardaí as "something terrible had happened".

A source told Extra "It is very early in the investigation but it appears there was a row on Saturday night and a man in his 30s took a knife to Annie and then to Henk.

"Henk managed to get himself to the neighbor’s after the house was set on fire and raised the alarm.

"The main suspect headed down to Ballyconnell itself and was in a very disoriented state by all accounts. He went into the local chipper and got them to call the guards as well and said something along the lines of, 'Something terrible has happened'."

John Paul Feeley, a local Fianna Fáil councilor, said that the community had been left "shattered".

He added: "This is a tight-knit rural community here. So, for something like this to happen is just terrible and it really is shocking. I had been speaking to neighbors who are distraught."