Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Irish Mirror
Irish Mirror
National
Paul Healy

Gardai believe man was lured to house before he was brutally beaten with hatchet

Gardai believe that this man may have been lured to a house where he was brutally beaten to death with a hatchet.

Marius Juodenas, 44, died three weeks after he was discovered with serious injuries at a house in Barrack Street Dundalk, Co Louth on July 5.

His death is now being treated as a murder - and gardai believe he was may have been killed over a grudge between him and a number of Eastern European men.

Read more: Gardai show locations of checkpoints and speed vans in warning to motorists

Officers are now understood to be investigating if Marius, who is originally from Lithuania, may have been lured to the house over a personal grudge.

It is believed that a verbal altercation then occurred between Mr Juodenas and a number of men - which then became violent.

The physical row is then suspected to have spilled out onto the street, where Mr Juodenas was then hit in the head with an axe.

He was later rushed to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Drogheda before he was transferred to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin.

Mr Juodenas was placed on life support and died in hospital on Tuesday.

It is understood that some heartbroken family members flew from Lithuania to be by his side and have also spoken with gardai in recent days.

The garda investigation into the incident has since been upgraded to a murder probe.

Officers are now understood to be investigating if the victim was lured to the area and set upon in a premeditated attack.

However they also have not ruled out that the victim went to the house of his own accord and that the subsequent verbal row turned sour.

But investigators are suspicious of how those believed to be involved in the attack had an axe and other suspected weapons readily available.

Mr Juodenas is also believed to have been beaten with another implement during the ordeal.

Gardai are understood to have identified a number of suspects in the case -

and a number of searches have been carried out in recent days.

In an appeal for information, gardai said:

“Shortly before 7pm, gardaí attended a house on Barrack Street, in Dundalk, where Marius was discovered with serious injuries.

“He was brought to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda before being transferred to Beaumont Hospital, where he was placed on life support.

“He was pronounced deceased at Beaumont Hospital yesterday, Tuesday, 26th July 2022.

“A post-mortem was conducted today at Dublin City mortuary, the results of which are not being released for operational reasons.”

Anincident room has now been put in place at Dundalk Garda station and a murder investigation has now commenced under the guidance of a senior investigating officer.

A Family Liaison Officer has also been appointed and is continuing to keep the family informed of the investigation.

Gardaí are appealing for witnesses and are particularly appealing to those who were in the vicinity of Barrack Street between 6.30pm and 7.00pm on July 5, 2022, to come forward.

Any road users who were travelling in the area and who may have camera, including dash cam, footage is asked to make it available to investigating Gardaí.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Dundalk Garda Station on 042 938 8400, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111 or any Garda station.

READ NEXT:

Get breaking news to your inbox by signing up to our newsletter

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.