A Dublin drug dealer suffered a ‘gruesome’ death before his body was chopped up and scattered across farmland in County Meath.
Detectives have identified the dismembered arm found in a field in Clonee, near the Dublin-Meath border, as that of convicted criminal Christopher Gaffney.
They are now searching the area near the find for remaining body parts after discovering more chopped up remains in a search on Saturday.
Gaffney, a 37-year-old from the nearby town of Blanchardstown, was identified by his fingerprints on the police database according to the Irish Independent.
His arm was discovered in a wooded area at The Mayne in Clonee on Friday by a person out walking.
The report says that other body parts, including a torso, were found on Saturday as forensic officers, sniffer dogs and divers searched a stream in the area close to the IBM factory.
The victim has been reported as missing by a family member three weeks ago.
Detectives are currently awaiting the results of a post-mortem examination on the body parts to determine an exact cause of death.
The paper says it is understood the victim suffered a gruesome death before his body was chopped up and dumped.
The wife of a local farmer who owns large tracts of land next to where the remains were found told the Independent she was “horrified” the discovery was made so close to where they live.
Ros Ward said: “I’m shocked, but not necessarily surprised they found the remains round here.
“We’re so close to Dublin and literally at the edge of Meath. There are terrific access roads coming in and out and I’ve often thought it was surprising - what with all these horrible murders and drug addicts being bumped off - that we haven’t come across a body around here before.
“It’s quiet and perfect for that sort of thing. The poor family. It’s one thing if someone’s body is found, but if they’ve been dismembered it’s a whole different thing.”
Comments