The man and woman who were discovered deceased in a residence in Glenbeigh, Co Kerry on Tuesday, February 4 have been named locally as David (52) and Hazel (51) Byrne.
The Byrnes, originally from Mallow in Co Cork, reportedly moved to Glenbeigh in 2018.
Gardaí announced on Tuesday morning that they were investigating all the circumstances following the discovery of two bodies at a domestic residence in Glenbeigh that morning.
The scene was preserved and an examination by the Garda Technical Bureau was set to take place later on Tuesday. The Coroner and the office of the State Pathologist were notified.
Announcing the discovery of the bodies on Tuesday morning, Gardaí said early indications suggested both bodies had been undiscovered for a period of time, since late 2024.
Later on Tuesday, the Irish Times reported that Gardaí expect postmortem examinations will confirm that the couple died from carbon monoxide poisoning in an apparent double suicide.
Locals raised the alarm on Tuesday morning after they went to check on the "reclusive" couple only to discover a notice on the door warning people not to enter because of carbon monoxide.
Gardaí requested the assistance of Kerry County Fire Service, the Irish Times said on Tuesday evening. Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus entered the house and found the bodies of the couple in a bedroom.
Once the house was vented and made safe, Gardaí preserved the scene and requested the services of a State Pathologist.
Garda sources told the Irish Times that the formal identification of the couple is likely to involve either dental records or DNA samples as it is understood that both remains were badly decomposed in the sealed house possibly since early October.
The Irish Times noted that Gardaí have notified the Byrnes’s relatives in Mallow of the tragedy, though it is understood they had not been in contact with their families for years.
The couple has been described as "reclusive" by locals and neighbors in the tight-knit community.
“There’s a dark cloud over the community today,” local Fianna Fáil TD Michael Cahill said on Tuesday, according to the Irish Examiner.
“That couple have been here for a number of years now and very few seem to know anything about them.
“On occasion, you'd see them walking on the beach in the late evening but they kept themselves very much to themselves.
“They haven't been seen for a while but I suppose how that went unnoticed was the fact that they'd hardly be out at all anyway.”
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